Chipmunks: secrets and spirits
by Tryingtowriteprostyle
Summary: the saga of the chipmunks continues back in our time, and into some barely explored territory: the minds of the chipmunks. What sort of things do these young teens keep hidden within? Find out here.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter one

Somewhere in the back alleys of Hollywood. "How much longer do you have?" "Until I lose control again?" "Yes." "A few days." "I see." "You know what to do after that happens, right?" "Yeah. I take the chosen ones and get them ready ." "Good, but first we must them." "Yeah, the power we must give them is too much for just anybody." "That is precisely why we must find the correct ones. The 'chosen' ones." "Do you think that he will do anything about our plan? You know that he has a small clue about what we intend to do with the power we stole from him. Do you think he'll harm the chosen ones?" "I don't know. All we can do is hope that we're able to complete our plan before he finds them. If he found them before then, I shutter to think what he may do to them." "Me too." "Well, for now, all we can do is set up our front and hope the chosen ones come in. Let's finish our preparations." "Right." Meanwhile, the chipmunks were going about their day. Today was another ordinary day for the chipmunks and their girlfriends, the chipettes. Despite all the adventures they had had recently, starting with the arrivals of their long lost siblings, Cash and Katrina, they were now living the lives of normal teenagers. Well, as normal as teenage life for an anthropomorphic chipmunk gets anyways. Recently, Cash had gotten the cast off his leg and was able to walk around with out a crutch or the assistance of his own girlfriend, Katrina. Since the defeat of the psychotic Franklin siblings, they had had no more adventures. Nothing exciting was happening. This, of course, suited Dave just fine. He was glad that his boys were now safe and sound. That nothing and no one were after his sons and future daughter-in-laws anymore. He was positive that Miss Miller, Vinny and Xavier would agree with him that this was how life should be. However, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was coming. He didn't want to bring it up to his boys, since they seemed to be enjoying their time off from being heroes over and over again. They had hung up their weapons and he didn't want them to have to get them down again. So, he kept quiet and prayed that whatever it was, it wouldn't be too bad. For now, he would focus on cleaning his car. He would have to stuff all the kids into his car and take them down town later, so he figured that it should at least be clean. The chipettes were visiting today, an occurrence that was now pretty much an everyday thing. Not that Dave minded. He enjoyed seeing his boys happy and in love with the girls. Not to mention, when they were spending time with the girls, they were rarely getting into trouble. Even Alvin got into fewer messes when Brittany was around to spend time with him. That wasn't saying that they didn't get into the occasional fight with one another. They were brothers after all and, no matter how close siblings are, they will always fight. But, for the past week, none of Dave's four boys had any problems with each other. So, in Dave's mind, aside from the nagging feeling, everything was just fine. As said earlier, just like how life should be. "Woohoo! Got'em!" That was Alvin from in the den. He had finally defeated the boss of the video game he had been playing all morning. The chipmunks were waiting for Cash to get down with what he was doing before they went down town. They didn't mind the wait, since Cash's business happened to be spending time with his visiting grandfather, who Cash had not met until today. As soon as said Grandfather left, the chipmunks would be headed down town.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

" Boy, Alvin's still as loud and rambunctious as ever, eh?" "You said it Grandpa." Cash was in the kitchen with his grandfather and Katrina. They were just wrapping up the visit. " Well, I'd best be leaving. Gotta start training if I'm ever gonna deliver those Easter baskets in record time. You know I bet Mr. Hoppity that I could get to your house with my baskets for you before he could get here with your baskets from him." "Right, what ever you say Grandpa." Cash said, rolling his eyes. " You don't believe me?" 'Well, no offense Grandpa but, you don't make a convincing argument." "Trust me, he's telling the truth." Simon said, walking into the room. "Get done making out with Jeanette?" "And that makes both of you. Alvin asked me that too." "Well?" "We're going over blueprints for another machine I intend to invent." " Oh boy. Just promise you won't aim the damn thing at me this time. One teleportation trip around the world is enough for one life time." " I've told you, Cash, that was a freak accident." "Still though.' Grandpa began to laugh. " 'sigh' I remember arguing with my brother like that." The brothers became aware once more that their grandfather was still there. " Well, guess you better get going, huh? Lot's of training to do, right?" Cash asked. "Yup. I must be off. But, before I go, Cash?" "Yeah, Grandpa?" "Let me tell you something. Your father would've been very proud to see how you've turned out. I know that son of mine would be very proud of you." " Thanks Grandpa. That means a lot to hear you say that." "Hey, Cash! Come check out all the stuff I unlocked!" "Coming, Al! See ya later, Grandpa." Then Cash left the room. ' Well, I'd best be going too. Simon, say goodbye to your brothers for me." " Okay, Grandpa." " Katrina, it was good to meet you.' "I enjoyed meeting you too, Mr. Chipmunk." "Please. If you really are going to marry Cash, call me Grandpa." " Ha-ha, okay, Grandpa." " Man, how many of those things did you fuse to get that?!" 'A lot, my brother. A lot." They heard Alvin reply. "Man, you gotta give me the list of what you used to get that. I know it'll help me beat this boss I'm stuck on " "Okay, give me a second. I can't believe it though. You, who can swat bad guys away like flies in real life, can't beat a video game boss?" " Video game bad guys are tougher." Cash replied. Katrina saw Grandpa smile. " Like father, like son?" " Yeah. That son of mine was just like Cash. I've noticed subtle things that Alvin, Simon and Theodore have that make them like Tom, but Cash is pretty much his father reincarnated." "You sound like mom." Simon said. " Simon! I think I've figured out where the power supply should be placed. So please, hurry up and get those drinks." Jeanette called. " Right! Gotta go, Grandpa." Simon left the room, leaving Katrina and grandpa alone. "Hey, grandpa?" Katrina asked. "Yes?" "Can I ask you something?' 'Of course." "Why didn't you ever tell them?" "I don't understand what you mean, Katrina." 'I mean, you and mom(Vinny) both knew that the guys dad was dead and that Cash existed, so why didn't you tell them? Or why didn't you tell mom that Cash was alive when you found out?" 'Well, Tom's death was, and still is, a pretty painful thing to talk about. As for not telling anyone about Cash, well, you already know that Vinny thought Cash was dead. After I found him, I tried to tell her, but the minute she heard his name, she busted into tears. So, with her, I never got the chance. As for the guys, well, Cash never knew me until now, so he wouldn't have believed me if I tried to talk to him back then. And Alvin, Simon and Theodore never knew he existed, and they have a habit of not believing me when I'm telling them the absolute truth. So, I kept my mouth shut and prayed that the future would bring them together." ' I see. Um, one more thing." " Okay." " How did you find Cash and how long ago?' Hmm, how old were the guys when they first met me? Oh, right, nine. So about four years ago. As for how, it was shear dumb luck. My retirement village went on a little trip, a vacation of sorts, and we visited the town Cash was living in. I was out walking around a bit and I heard a chipmunk voice. I thought "are the boys here?" So, I went to look. There I saw the nine year old Cash, talking with that Mr. Ikebana. At first I thought 'Oh, it's some other chipmunk kid." But, then I heard Mr. Ikebana talk to Cash. I heard him call him Cash. I thought ' gotta be a coincidence.' And then Cash said something, I don't remember what now, that made Mr. Ikebana mad. And Mr. Ikebana, sounding a lot like Dave when he yells at Alvin, shouts "Cassius!" I don't know why, but when I heard his full name, I just knew it was Cash. Our Cash. After that, I made it a point to get a basket out to him on Easter. He's never known until now that it's been me giving him that other basket on Easter." " But still you tried to take care of him." "Yup. He's my grandson after all. And one day, you'll be my granddaughter. So, if you ever need anything, now or later on down the road, don't hesitate to ask. I don't know what I can do, but I'll help you anyway I can." " Thanks Grandpa." "Thanks, Alvin. Hey.. Alright! I think I have all of these on my game. I can make this in the heart beat. Great." Katrina sighed "What's the matter, Katrina?" Grandpa asked. "I don't know. I don't even know how to put it into words." 'You could ramble. I'll listen." "Don't you have to be going soon?" " I've always got plenty of time for family, present and future." "Okay. Well, you see, lately, I can't help but think of how many times Cash has rescued me or protected me. So self sacrificing. And that's the problem. I love him and as such, I don't want him to get killed protecting me. I don't want him to die period but, I especially don't want him to die protecting me. But, I'm so weak that he has to protect me. I mean, when i look at how many times he's saved me compared to the number of times I've saved him, i just feel so.. Unworthy. If I was him, i would've given up on me long ago. It would save me, i mean him, a lot of pain." "Katrina, Cash does that because he loves you." "I know but, he's always saving me and I'm never able to help him at all." "But, Kate, you do help him." ' What?" "When a man has something worth protecting, it's makes him stronger than he's ever been in his life. You know how they say that love is a powerful thing and that it conquers all? Well, i can tell you, it's absolutely true. When I was trying to 'land', as you kids would say, the boys grandmother, I had lots of trouble. I loved her, no questions asked, but there was this other chipmunk who had his eyes on her too. He liked her for her looks, i loved her for the person I had gotten to know, since I had known for a while before I realized that I was in love with her. Eventually, we ended up fighting for her. Now, he was twice as big as me, but I still stood my ground. And He beat me into that ground. Beat me well beyond what i could have taken normally. But, my love for her gave me strength. It made me strong enough to be able to take everything he threw at me and get back up. Sure, i felt like passing out, and probably would have if she wasn't on the line. But she was and the thought of losing her tore at me like someone was driving a corkscrew into my chest. So, i didn't pass out. Eventually, he got really worn down and, when he was as tired as he was ever going to get, I summoned everything I had and let him have it. I floored him and he was so tired that he couldn't get up. Then I passed out. I woke up to find her taking care of me. And that's how we got started. And it's the same deal with you and Cash. You give him strength. Your what keeps him alive when he should be dead. If he gave up on you, it would be his luck to get into another big fight and, with out your bond to give him strength, he wouldn't make it. See? He needs you as much as you need him." 'But I wish that I didn't need him so much. I wish I could be strong, like him." ' Well, you must be stronger than you think." ' What?" "Well, see, i think that Cash is the kind of person who connects with people that he sees the good in. He sees something in them that he likes and he becomes friends with them. With you, i think he sees something in you that he likes and he wants to see it come to the surface." "How can you tell?' "I'm his grandpa. Grandparents just know these things about their grandkids. Just wait until your old and gray and you've got a few grandkids of your own. You'll see these things in them. Trust me." Katrina nodded. "Now, then, as i was saying, Cash sees something in you. Something strong. I see it too. I think, and I'll bet that he thinks too, that there's a strong young lady in there, dying to get out. Like, the real Katrina is trapped in a shell and she can't get out. You have to stop being afraid if you want to become strong. I learned that when I went after the boys Grandmother. That other munk scared that crap out of me before we both started going after the same girl. But, I knew that I had to stand up to him if i ever hoped to have her. So, i over came my fear and fought him. Now, the question is, what are you afraid of? There's nobody around to beat you up, or get in your way, so what are you afraid of?' "Bees." "What?" "I'm afraid of bees. And small spaces." "And that's what makes you unable to change?' 'Well, i don't know if that's it exactly. I know it doesn't help though. When I see what Cash is afraid of, well, it might be taken a bit too far in his case but, no one isn't afraid of the grave, or being buried live. His fear makes sense. But me? I'm afraid of small insects that couldn't hope to do me in. Ever since a beehive feel on me when i was little, I've been afraid of them. And being trapped in a cage by jack Franklin, I'm sure, is what gave me my fear of tight spaces. But, I've never had to deal with either of these, so I shouldn't be afraid of them anymore. But still, I freeze when I hear anything that sounds like buzzing bees and, second only to Brittany, I have the biggest closet in the house in my room because I'm afraid of being trapped in a little one. 'sigh' I'm pathetic." "No your not Katrina. You are smart, beautiful, and deep down, stronger than anyone, even you, know. I can just tell. You just haven't had the right thing happen to you that'll bring that strength up. Cash sees it and, since he loves you, I'm sure that he believes that it'll come to the surface someday. The shell I talked about is cracked, but it's up to you to decide when you fully hatch. So the question is, when that thing that'll help you hatch comes, are you going to take advantage of it?" " I don't know. I want to believe you but, I just don't know." 'I see. Well, All I know is that I believe in you, and so does Cash. I know you'll be able to do it. I've done all I can, now it's up to you." Grandpa looked at the clock. "Well, I'd better be going for real now. But, I want you to think about what I said Katrina.." "I'll try." "Good enough for me. Well, see you around." "Bye, Grandpa." "Bye, Grandpa!" Katrina heard Alvin shout. Katrina walked into the den and looked out the window and Grandpa, who was saying good bye to Dave. " Something wrong, Kate?" Cash asked. "No. Not a thing." As soon as Grandpa headed off to catch the shuttle back to his retirement village, Dave called to the munks. "Alright kids. The car's ready! Let's roll!"


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"**Okay, so, where are we going exactly?" Dave asked. "It's at the corner of Newton and Main." Brittany said. "Hey, that's, like, right next door to uncle Ben's circus." Alvin said. "Uh-huh. It sure is." "But, what is it exactly?" Cash asked. "It's a traveling fortune teller's set up. It's supposed to be in town today." "Fortune telling eh?" Simon asked. 'You don't believe in it, Sy?' Brittany asked. "No. As a Christian, I'm not supposed to, though I do prescribe to the theory of fate. And that's what fortune telling is supposed to help with. It's supposed to be a means of reading fate. But, since I've never seen anyone who's actually able to do it, I don't believe in it.." "So, you believe in fate, but not fortune telling." "Well, I've never seen proof of it. I have to believe in spirits and mystical energies, thanks to all our adventures so far. And, Kate, and even Raya to some degree, have given me firm proof of the existence of psychic powers, though neither of them are that strong yet. So, I don't have a problem with any of that. But, while I'm willing to believe in lots of things, if there's been overwhelming evidence against it, I tend not to. What about you? Do you believe in it?" "Honestly, no." 'But you seemed like you did." " That was an act. I wanted to see if you believed or not, Simon, so I pretended that I did. But, I really don't, cause I don't believe that anyone can really predict the future. Unless God wants them to see it. Like, some random guy on the street could say that he'll be filthy stinking rich in ten years and be dead wrong. But, if God shows him that future, or gives him the power to see that future, then it'll happen. That's what I believe." 'I see. Well, what do you think about fortune tellers?" "I think they put on a good show. And that's why we're going to this one, to see a good show." " I heard that she reads your palm and then gives you a card that's supposed to be a representation of your character." Katrina said. "Well, I guess that could be interesting.' Simon said. "That's the spirit, Sy." Katrina said. The drive continued and the munks eventually reached their destination. "Man, this place is creepy looking." Alvin said. 'It's just a big tent in an empty lot, Al.' Cash said. "Still though. It's kinda creepy." "Now that you mention it, something doesn't feel right." Katrina said. 'Your powers telling you something?" Jeanette asked. "No, it's just a feeling." "Well, that's probably just because your letting the creep factor get to you. Now, let's go." Brittany said. 'Okay, you kids have fun. By the way, where are you going after this?" Dave asked. "I think it'd be a good idea to drop in on Uncle Ben and then go see a movie, like we already planned." Simon said. "Good idea, Sy. Let's do it!" Alvin yelled. "Alright then, I'm going to head over to the label to see what Todd wanted when he called earlier. I'll see you later." "Bye Dave." All eight munks said as Dave drove off. "Alright, now let's get in there.' Brittany said. The munks entered the tent. "Hello there, young ones." A strange man greeted them. "Uh, hi. We're here to see the fortune teller." Eleanor said. 'Yes, of course you are. And, your in luck, Madam Iza has not had any other appointments set up for this morning. She can see you immediately. Just let me go tell her your here. Oh, are you all going in together or one at a time?" "Together." Brittany said. The others nodded. "Alright. I'll be back in a minute." The man disappeared into the back. " Well, he seems friendly." Jeanette said. "Yeah, and a little weird." Alvin said. "Ah that's just part of the show, honey." Brittany said. Meanwhile. 'Hey, Iza, I think we've struck gold. Believe it or not, the chipmunks just walked in. And I could sense it coming off of them. Raw talent and power. Each of them is strong. I could just tell. I think they're the ones." "This early? Well, we'll see. Send them in." "Right" The man went back to the munks. 'You may come in now." The munks followed the strange greeter into the back. 'Welcome, one and all. I am Lady Iza. Teller of truths and reader of souls." "Here we go." Alvin said. Brittany elbowed him. 'Listen." 'Okay, sorry, honey." " Please, tell me your names.' Lady Iza said. "I'm Brittany.' "I'm Alvin.' " My name is Jeanette." 'I'm Simon." "Hi, I'm Eleanor." "My name's Theodore." "I'm Katrina." "And my name's Cash.' "Brittany, Alvin, Jeanette, Simon, Eleanor, Theodore, Katrina and Cash. Fine names. Now, each of you, come before me and we shall begin." "You go first, Alvin." Simon said. "What, why? It was Britt's idea." "Just do it." " Fine. I guess I'm first, Lady Iza." "Very well. Step up and have a seat across from me, Alvin." Alvin did as instructed. "Now, stick out your hand. It doesn't matter which, but make sure your palm is open and facing up.' "Yeah, I know. We heard about how you work.." Alvin stuck out his right hand. Lady Iza began to prod and feel about Alvin's hand. "How's it feel, Alvin?" Simon asked. "Feels fine. Her hands are cold, but other wise, it's fine." " please, try not to talk or move. Lady Iza needs silence and concentration." The Greeter said. "Sorry." :Lady Iza soon finished reading Alvin's hand. Then, she slapped her hand onto the top of a deck of cards. "I will now find the card that represents your character. But before that, you should know, these are purely character cards. Representations, and nothing more. So, if your faith speaks against the use of occult tarot cards, fear not. These are not they, and are perfectly fine. They share the same names, but that is all." The munks nodded. Lady is then drew her finger down the edges of the cards until she found the one she was looking for. "Here you are, Alvin. You are represented by the emperor card." "The emperor? Cool.' "Indeed. It is a good card to be represented by. For you see, to be of the emperor sign, means that you are a balanced individual. An emperor wishes for the peoples' attention to be on him, and will go to some lengths to get this attention. However, he is not a malevolent person. When the need arises, he shall defend those that can not defend themselves. It is this benevolence that prevents the emperor from ever becoming an evil being." "Cool. Thanks." Lady Iza placed the card back in the deck and said " Next." 'Britt, this was your idea, so you go next." Alvin said. 'Alright." Lady Iza read Brittany's palm and drew her card. "Brittany, you are the empress. Like the emperor, the empress desires attention, but stops short of true cruelty when comes to her means of getting it. For, inside, the empress has a kind heart and cares deeply about others." "Wow." "Next." "Um, Simon, why don't you give it a whirl?" "Well, so as long as this isn't witchcraft or anything, okay." Lady Iza read Simon's palm. "Ah, yes, you are most definitely the fortune card, Simon." "Fortune? But, I'm not lucky at all." "Ah, but that proves it. A person of the fortune sign never believes they are lucky, for they tragically over look all that God gives them. A person of fortune is not fortunate in the sense that they are lucky, or have lots of money, but in that they are gifted with unique talents and great blessings. They may have keen athletic ability, a sharp intellect or other such physical trait. But, their fortune truly shines when one looks at their truest blessings, their loved ones. Those of the fortune sign have large, loving families, close friends and a devoted lover." 'Yup, that sounds like Sy alright.' Alvin said. 'I see. Maybe I am the fortune card. And thank God for that." Simon said, looking at Jeanette. The blue clad chipette couldn't help but smile. "Next." "Jeanette, why don't you go next? And Ely and Theo can go after you." Alvin said. "Well, alright."**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"**Well, if you are next, please step up Jeanette." Lady Iza said. Jeanette stepped up and placed her palm in position. " You chipmunks continue to surprise me, for we have another unique one. Jeanette, you are of the chariot sign." 'I'm a chariot?" "Yes. Allow me to explain. You see, Chariots are unique in that they posses a special power. They are not the strongest, or the fastest, or even the most coordinated." 'Ping, hit the nail on the head." Alvin said. "Alvin!" Simon said. "Sorry, but it's true. I love her like a sister but, Jeanette's a little klutzy." "She's not that bad off, and you don't have to be so blunt. Just keep your mouth shut." 'Okay, sorry." Jeanette's eyes looked down. 'Do not despair, Jeanette. For you have not heard what makes a chariot unique. The unique power of a chariot, is an indomitable inner strength. Chariots are the embodiment of the saying 'you can break the back, but you can't break the spirit.' Chariots posses a strength that allows them to continue where others would give up. No matter how many times they slip and fall, those of the chariot sign are able to pick themselves up and continue. Like a real chariot with only one wheel, those of the chariot sign can keep on going , even if only for a little while." Jeanette seemed to brighten up a bit after hearing this and ignored what Alvin had said. "Next." 'Your turn, Theo." "Okay." Lady Iza's fingers searched over Theodore's hand and then went to the deck of character cards. "This is your card, Theodore. It is the strength card." "Strength? But, I'm not.." "Strong? Yes, I expected you to say that. But, as they say, looks can be deceiving. Those of the strength sign often do not realize their full potential. They do not realize that true strength, in terms of physical power, does not come from their muscles, but their strong heart. After all, with out the heart pumping blood, what good are the muscles? But, what truly makes those of the strength great is that, not only do they have a strong heart, but they also have the sense to follow that heart. And, so long as they do that, they will find it within themselves to fell the strongest foes. Surely you have taken on someone larger and stronger looking than you, and defeated them, at least once in your life. Am I correct?" 'Well, yeah, I guess." "Well, there you go." 'I guess you might be right." 'Well, believe what you wish. Now, I believe Eleanor is next." Eleanor stepped up. "Ah, Eleanor, the purity I sense from you is like a radiant light sending waves of warmth through me. I'm sure that many people have told you that you will make a great mother one day." 'Yeah, I've been told that." "Well, you should believe it. This purity you posses will serve you well when you eventually enter motherhood. And, it is because of this purity that I am positive that your card is the priestess. Those priestess sign are pure hearted and only want what they believe is best for those they care about. And, they will do everything in their power to make sure that those people get exactly what they need." "And that's Ely all over." Brittany said. "I'm a priestess...cool. Thanks." "Your welcome. Now, who's next?" "I'll go next. That is, if you don't mind, Cash." Katrina said. " I ain't got a problem with going last. Knock yourself out." Katrina nodded and went to have her palm read.. "Katrina, I can tell you, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that you belong to the lovers sign. You, as with all those of the lovers sign, carry a compassionate soul. It is because of this compassion that you will always be able to draw people who will truly care about you to you. Also, those of the lovers sign, as the name implies, are never closer to anyone than they are to the person they truly love." Katrina looked at Cash and grinned. Cash returned with a smirk of his own. Katrina hopped off the chair and went to cash. "Your turn." "Ah, yes. Last but not least, Cash." Lady Iza said. Cash sat down and stuck out his hand. "Ah, Cash, you are the most unique of all. You belong to the sign of the fool." 'What?" Brittany chuckled quietly to herself, but Alvin busted out laughing. "The fool!? Cash?! Ah man, that's good!" Cash looked at his red clad brother and growled a little bit. 'Please, don't be upset, Cash. The card is much more than it appears. Those of the fool are not categorized as such because they are foolish. They are placed under that sign for, like a court jester, they are people of many talents and faces. They are people of great experience. As such, despite what their sign's name may imply, they make great leaders and highly respected by their peers." "Uh-huh. Sure." "well, your free to believe what you wish. With that, We conclude our business together." 'That's it? We thought you were fortune teller." Brittany said. "But, Brittany, by telling you which character card sign you belong to, I have told your fortunes. For you see, so long as you remain true to yourselves, and thus the cards, and defend what you believe in, your lives will be fulfilling. That is not to say that you will not face hardships, because we all must and will. But, so long as you never allow yourselves to be turned into something your not, then your lives will never have a feeling of emptiness or incompletion. And, with that, I bid you good day." "Okay. How much do we owe you?" Brittany asked. "My services are free." "Great, now let's go." Cash said. The munks followed Cash out. "Well, that was pretty entertaining. And, she seemed to be on point with each of us." Simon said. "Now do you believe?" Brittany asked. "Well, I now believe that you can learn a lot about people by learning how to read palms. But, unfortunately, that wasn't exactly fortune telling, so, no, I don't believe yet." "Eh, at least it was entertaining." 'Yeah, so long as she was telling the truth about no part of that being witchcraft, then it was a good way to kill some time." Cash said, still sounding irritated. "Ah, your just mad cause your a fool. But, don't feel too bad. After all, we can't all be emperors." Alvin said. "Shut up, Alvin." " Ah, Cash, don't so be mad. I mean, you heard what lady Iza said. By the sound of it, the fool is the strongest sign." Katrina said. "Yeah, whatever. Now, can we go visit this uncle Ben Simon mentioned and then go to the movies?" "Yeah, let's go." Meanwhile. "Well, my lady? What did you think of them?" "I believe you were right about them. They are the ones. I could just feel it." 'So, did you give them the power?" "Yes, I did. It was in the cards." "But, you didn't let them keep the cards." 'They didn't need to keep the cards. They only needed to touch the cards to receive the power, and they all did. Everything is going according to plan." " Should I gather them up now?" "No. What we expect of them is a lot to ask of ones so young. Give them a few days. Besides, it will take at least two to three days for the power we've given them to merge with their psyches and be strengthened. Until then, keep an eye on them. I doubt he knows what we've done yet, but we should keep watch over them to be safe." "What do you think he'd do to them if he found out now?' 'I don't know, but I know that he can't reclaim the power now. It's theirs and theirs alone now. The only way he could get it back is to somehow force them to give it to him." 'Not even killing them will take the power back?" "I don't think so. It'll only leave them if they give it up freely or use it all in one go somehow." 'I see. Do you think they'll be ready before you lose control?" "I doubt it, unfortunately. So, guard them well. And, keep an eye on Cash. I believe he'll become a key player in this story."**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**The munks walked around the corner and onto the lot on which Uncle Ben's circus sat. Almost immediately, a large grey elephant, dressed in a pink tu-tu, came stomping up and scooped the original six chipmunks into the air with it's trunk. "Ha-ha, hi, pinky!" Alvin yelled. Simon looked down at Cash and Katrina, who were standing there with puzzled looks on their faces. "This is Pinky. She's been in Uncle Ben's circus for as far back as any of us can remember. And, obviously, she's got a soft spot for us. Speaking of us, Pinky, could you put us down?" Seemingly understanding Simon's request, Pinky put the munks down. "Pinky, this is Cash. He's our brother too." Theodore explained. "And this is Katrina, Pinky. She's our sister." Brittany said. "Uh, Hi, pinky. Cash said. Pinky scooped Cash and Katrina into the air. 'Whoa!" Katrina yelled. 'Affectionate, ain't cha?" Cash asked. "Okay, Pinky. That's enough. You like them, they get it. Now put them down." Came a voice. A pot bellied man came walking up to the group. "Hey, uncle Ben." Alvin said. "Hello everyone. Pinky." Pinky put Cash and Katrina down. "Good girl. Now go play. You don't have any shows today, so go play." Pinky stomped off. "Sorry about that. Pinky just really likes you chipmunks." "Not a problem. That was really cute, actually." Katrina said. "Oh, but where are my manners? Hello, sir. I'm Katrina Miller. Nice you meet you." "Nice to meet you too, but, I already know who you are. I have a TV after all." "Oh, I see. You know, to be honest, I'm still getting used to the fame thing." "Just relax and it'll get easier, Kate. Just play it cool. Real cool." Brittany said. Katrina nodded. "Well, come on, everyone. Out here is no place to have a proper visit. Follow me to my office." The chipmunks followed. Uncle Ben back to his office, still placed inside a trailer. "Well, I'd offer you all something to drink, but I'm fresh out of pop." Ben said, sitting in his chair. " That's okay. We're going to go to the movies in a little while. We can get something at the theatre." Jeanette said. "Ah, ok. So, what brings you big rock stars around these parts?" "We were in the neighborhood, so we thought we'd drop by." Alvin said. "I see." 'Actually, we came to see Lady Iza, the fortune teller next door. And, when we finished there, we thought it' be a good idea to pay you a visit." Theodore said. 'Jeez, Theo. Your honest to a fault aren't you?" Alvin asked. "You were in that spooky place?" "Yeah." 'What was it like?" "Not as bad as I was expecting." Simon said. "She read each of our palms and then told each of us what character card 'sign' we belonged to.' Jeanette said. "I was an emperor." Alvin said. "And I was an empress." "Those the names of your signs?" "Yup." "Hmm, emperor and empress huh? Yeah, that sounds about right for you two. What about the rest of you?" "Priestess." Eleanor said. "Chariot." Jeanette said. "Fortune." Simon said. "Strength." Theodore said. "And I was under the lovers sign." Katrina finished. "Hmm, I see. Oh, what about you, Cash?" "Huh? Oh, I was a fortune, like Simon." 'You lying little.. Your sign was the fool and you know it!" Alvin said. "Let it die, Alvin!" "No way, man. I'm gonna be having some fun with this one for a while." "Is what Alvin's saying true, Cash? Your sign was really called 'the fool'?" "'sigh' Yeah." "Ooo, I see. Yeah, I'd lie about that too." "Yeah, well, you could. Me, not so much. Cause I got Alvin for a brother. But, if he keeps pissin' me off, that may change. By the way, when does the next bus come?" "Uh, in an hour I think, why?" 'Just wanting to know when the bus I'm gonna throw Alvin in front of is coming." "I'd take you with me." "Like you could." The two brothers began to stare each other down. "Okay, you two. Cool your jets. Something this stupid isn't worth fighting over." Eleanor said. "Alvin, let it go. And, Cash, chill out. This isn't that big a deal." "Yeah, okay, Ely." Cash said. "Alvin?" Cash asked, extending his hand. "Alright, I'm sorry." Alvin said, shaking Cash's hand. "And I'm sorry I threatened to throw you in front of a bus." "You wouldn't really do that would you? Even I really, REALLY, pissed you off?" "Well, I can't say I wouldn't be tempted, but, I don't think I would. But even if I did, your quick on your feet. You could dodge it anyway." "Yeah! Cause I'm like lightning! Got the strength of a gorilla, and the speed of a cheetah. Ah yeah!" "And there he goes into his little fantasy world." Simon said. "Hey Alvin, you better calm down. Cause if your head gets any bigger, it's gonna explode." " Ah shut up, Simon. Life's hard. Let a guy have a little day dream once in a while, man." "Whatever. So, Uncle Ben, how have you been?" The visit went on for half an hour. Finally, Simon pulled out his phone to check the time. "If I'm not mistaken, the movie we wanna see starts in twenty minutes, and it's gonna take us at least ten to get to the theatre. We gotta book it." "Well, I'd drive you but, I got a lot of work to do around here." "That's okay, uncle Ben. We're all pretty fast runners.' Alvin said, slapping his leg. "Well, alright. Well, if your gonna make it in time, you'd better get going. But, don't be strangers. I got a show this Saturday, maybe you could come." 'We'll see. But, we gotta go. Bye Uncle Ben." Simon said, as the munks left. "Okay, pound the pavement! Let's go!" The munks ran fast and hard. Their feet slapped the pavement. Along the way, Brittany felt the urge to sing. 'And it's all over town. Run for your life, keep your moving.." "Run more, sing less, Britt!" Eleanor called. "We've only got ten minutes! Just focus on running!" 'Okay, Okay!" "Man, Ely's getting really bossy lately." She thought. The munks made it just in time to order the tickets. 'Okay, everybody pool your money for the tickets." Cash said. Everyone handed him their money. 'Okay, I'll be back in a second." Cash ran up to the ticket counter. "Hey, your.." The ticket saleswoman started. "Yeah, Cash Seville of the chipmunks, how you doin'? Listen, I need eight tickets to the next showing of Avatar." "Boy, your just in time. Here you go." "And here's the money. See ya." Cash ran back to the others. "Okay, I got the tickets. Al, Britt, go find us some good seats. The rest of us will get snacks." 'Remember to get nachos for us, Cash." Brittany called as she and Alvin ran off. ' I will. Alright, let's hurry guys." A few hours later. "Man, that kicked so much ass!" Alvin yelled as they walked out of theatre. 'Yeah, I can see why it's doing so well at the box office." Simon said. 'I wouldn't mind seeing it again." Eleanor said. "Yeah, me too." Jeanette said. "Well, we'll see. We gotta wait until we see Dave again. You never know, Todd might have a gig for us." Cash said. "But, if not, we should come back." 'Yeah, and let's spring for 3-d next time." Brittany said. 'Hell yeah!" Alvin yelled. Eleanor noticed Katrina looking around. "What's the matter, Katie?" "I feel like I'm being watched." "Well, we are the chipmunks. People are probably watching us every time we're in public." Brittany said. "Yeah, but, this feels different. Not bad, just different." "Well, don't worry about, Kate. Knowing our luck, if it was something bad, it would've tried to jump us already." Cash said. "I guess your right. Alright, let's call Dave and have him come pick us up." Meanwhile, in a nearby alley. "Yeah, Iza it's me. Yeah, I'm tailing them, just like you told me to. No, they're fine. So far, so good. Yeah, I'm keeping my eyes peeled for him just in case. What are they doing? Calling for a ride home. They just came out of the movies. Okay, got it. I'll keep tailing them a bit longer."**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

**The next day found the chipmunks messing around the house, while waiting for Dave to finish installing a basketball hoop on the front of the garage. Simon was in his lab, tinkering with his latest invention. Cash was playing against Alvin in a game of Wii bowling in the living room, and Theodore was baking some ginger cookies in the kitchen. "And here goes Alvin Seville, going for third perfect game in a row." "Third perfect? When did you get your first? I must've been asleep when that happened." 'Silence, fool. The emperor needs his concentration." "I'm gonna break his scrawny neck if he calls me that again. What's that make? The third time today? Ay yai yai. I guess I need to get Ely over to talk to him again." "Now, watch how the master bowls the perfect strike." "I'm watchin'." Alvin swung his arm back, then threw it forward, causing his on screen 'mii' to throw it's bowling ball down the lane. However, instead of going straight down the lane, it weaved constantly, coming close to going into the gutter several times. But, it did hit the center pin and knocked it and all the others down. "Hmm, that's the perfect throw? I thought the perfect throw was straight down the lane." "Ah, shut up. I bowled a perfect game, didn't I?" "And that's something to be proud of? Here, check this out." Cash backed out of the play screen for a moment and went to the high scores screen. "Look, Theo and Sy are both on here with perfect games, and they hardly ever play this game. Shoot, Dave's on here with a perfect a game, and he's only played it once." 'Your point is?" "That unless you play really badly, it's not really that hard to bowl a perfect game." "Ah, shut up." Cash snickered a little. He had Alvin made, and he and Alvin both knew it. And Cash knew that Alvin hated that, which made it all the more sweet for him. "Hey, Cash!' Theodore called. "What do ya want, Theo?" Cash called back. "Could you and Alvin come here for a second?" "I guess. Let's go, Al." "Alright, I could use a break from whooping your tail." "Alvin, I hate to break this to you, but, you said you've bowled three perfect games, right?' 'Yeah." 'I've bowled five." "You serious?" "You check the high scores yourself." 'You suck." "Whatever. Now, come on, let's go see what Theo wants. I bet we got some snacks in our future." Cash and Alvin walked into the kitchen. "What'cha need, Theo?" Alvin asked. "Try these cookies for me. I experimented with the recipe a little bit. Tell me if the changes I made made these any better." "Okay." Alvin and Cash each took a cookie and ate it. "MMM!" Alvin let out. "This is great! Theo, you should sell these, man!" "Are they really that good? Your not messing with me, are you?" "No way, Theo. These really are great. Whatever you did to them, well, let's just say, if you make more, you'd better do it again." Cash said. "Wow, all I did was use fresh ginger instead of dried and traded the usual lemon juice for orange juice for the tang factor." "Well, it's almost always the simplest changes that make the most difference." Cash said. "I guess your right. Hey, you think Eleanor would like these? I was planning on going to see her later, to have her taste test for me, but, if these are as good as you say, then maybe I should bake a whole dozen just for her." "Better make two. It's only fair to bring some for the other girls." Cash said. 'True, true. Alright, I'll get to work. Thanks guys." "No problem, baby bro. Now, come on, Cash. I feel like wiping the floor with you again." 'Is that what you call it in your fantasy world? Cause here in the normal world, we call that losing." "Quiet, fool." "That's it!" Cash was about to strangle Alvin when Dave called. "Boys! Come out here!" "Coming, Dave!' Alvin and Theodore ran outside, but Cash stopped at the door to Simon's lab. He knocked on it and called to Simon. 'Hey, Sy. Come on! I think Dave has the hoop set up." "But, Cash, I'm right in the middle of.." "Simon, if you don't take a break every once in a while, your gonna burn yourself out. Now come on!" "Well, alright. I'm coming." Cash and Simon quickly rejoined their brothers. "Alright, boys. There's your hoop, as promised." The boys had asked for this hoop a month ago. Dave promised to buy one and set it up as soon as he could. "Thanks, Dave." The chipmunks said. Alvin then walked into the garage and grabbed the old basketball laying on the floor." "Alright, boys. How's a bout a little two on two?" "Sure." Cash said. "Guys?" "Why not?' Theodore said. 'Simon?" 'Come on, Sy. It's not good for you to stay cooped up in your lab all the time." Alvin said. "But, I really need to get back to my work." "Come on, Sy. When's the last time the four of us just hung out? You know, like brothers should?" Alvin said. 'Alright, alright. One quick game." "Great.' Cash said, snatching the ball from Alvin's hands. "Simon's on my team." "Now wait just a second. Why do you get Simon?" Alvin asked. "I called dibs first." 'No fair man. Simon's the tall one. He's got the height advantage. He barely has to jump to do a jump shot. You two put together, you'd murder me and Theo." "Fine. I'll take Theodore. I just wanna play." "Oh, no. I'm up for the challenge. I can beat you without Simon." "Well, why don't we let Theodore decide who's team he wants to be on?" "Fine. Theo, who's team you wanna be on? Mine, or ninja boy's?" "Well, to be honest…" "Come on, just pick one." 'Well, I.. 'sigh'." "Why do I always get stuck in situations like this? Why does no one listen to me? I'd rather play with Simon against Alvin and Cash. But, no one will listen long enough for me to say that. Man, why couldn't I have born first, so I could boss them around?' Theodore said. "Hey, here's an idea." Simon said. "Why don't you two team up, against me and Theodore? That should make things interesting, at least." "Hmm, good idea, Sy. Let's do it." Alvin said. As the brother began to get ready to play, they heard a voice. "Hey, guys!" It was Jesse, their newest neighbor to bear the name Talbot. Larry and Raya had adopted him about three months, and the ten year old became fast friends with the chipmunks. He had Jason with him. "Look who I found at the store and followed me home." "Hey, Jay." Cash said. "Hey, Cash. What are you guys doing?" "Getting' ready to play some two on two. You guys want in? make it three on three?" "Sure." The two boys said. "Alright. Then Jay's on our team, and Jesse, your on Simon and Theodore's team." "Alvin said. "Fine. Let's do this." The six boys began to play their game. After twenty minutes, the score was tied. Then, Simon accidentally tripped Cash, which called for a free throw. If Cash sunk the basket, he, Alvin and Jason would win. "Alright, Cash. This is it! Sink it, man!" Alvin yelled. Cash lined up his shot. But, just as he was about to shoot, he heard a strange voice. "Cash!" "Huh?" Cash looked around. Jason and Alvin were cheering him on, but neither was yelling in a tone like the voice had spoke in. Then, he heard the voice again. This time, it was louder. Much louder. "Cash, listen to me! Time is running out. You must awaken and forge the bond, if you hope to gain the power to defeat the evil one. You must hurry! Awaken, Cash! Awaken!" Cash shook his head violently, trying to drive the voice away, as it was giving him a headache. Cash momentarily held his head in his palm. "Cash, are you alright?" Simon asked. "Y-yeah. Just got a little headache all of a sudden." 'Well, hurry up and sink this bucket, and then you can go lay down." Alvin said. "Right." Cash lined up his shot again and took it. He sunk the basket. "Nothing but net!" Alvin yelled. "I'm gonna go lay down.' "I'm gonna go back to work." Simon said. 'Yeah, alright. I guess I should practice my guitar riffs." "Jesse, Jason, if you guys wanna come in for a bit, I can whip up some ginger cookies for you take home." Theodore offered. "Sure. Thanks Theo." Jason said. 'No, problem. Come on." Cash, meanwhile, had wandered up the stairs and into his room. HE shut the door tight, and laid down. As he closed his eyes, he thought 'what the hell was that voice about?" " I must be letting Alvin get to me. I'm starting to hear him messing with me, when there's no way he can be. Yeah, that's gotta be it. Okay, time for a nap."**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

(The next day) "Okay, Jeanette. That should do it." 'Think of the possibilities, Simon. If this works, we may be leading the way to ending world hunger." "That's what I'm hoping for. Alright, bring on the first test subject." Today, the chipettes were visiting, and Simon and Jeanette were putting the final touches on and preparing to test Simon's latest invention. He had gotten the idea after watching an old cartoon. Basically, it would blast food with a burst of energy, which would in turn cause it's growth to escalate. In other words, it made food grow big. Very big. Simon thought that, if this machine worked, and was mass produced and then distributed to farms all over the world, it could end world hunger. Jeanette thought that was quite a bit to tackle, and thought Simon should start small and work his way up, but, she loved Simon, so she was willing to do whatever he asked of her with out question. And so, since Simon had asked for the firs test subject, she went and brought the first test subject, a fresh orange, into the machine's line of fire. "Alright, I think this is going to be a pretty bright flash of light, so goggles on." Jeanette and Simon put on their goggles and Simon began the countdown. 'Firing in three..two..one!" Simon threw the switch and the machine fired it's beam at the orange. Simon stopped the ray and he and Jeanette watched with anticipation. "Come on, grow. Grow." Simon said. As if answering his pleas, the orange began to grow. "Yes! Now, bigger. Grow bigger!" On cue, the orange began to grow even larger. "'gasp' Simon, It's working!" "Keep going. Keep going! Come on, just a little bigger." The orange grew to the size of a bowling ball. "Yes, yes, yes!" Simon cheered, growing more excited by the second. In his excitement, he spontaneously kissed Jeanette. "S-simon.." "We're doing it, Jeanette! We're really doing it!" "Y-yeah!" Simon hugged Jeanette. "This is history in the making. I'm so glad you're here to share this with me. And thank you for all your help." "Your welcome, Simon…Uh, Simon?" "Yeah?" "Is the orange supposed to pulsate like that?" "Pulsate? What are you talking about?" "Look." Simon looked. Sure enough, the orange was pulsating, as it continued to grow larger. "Oh no. No, no, no, no! Please tell me it's not doing what I think it's doing!" "Oh no! The energy is making it grow too fast. The orange is becoming unstable! And if this keeps up.." Simon saw the pulsating reach a crescendo. "Jeanette, get down!" Simon yelled. He threw himself on top of her in order to shield her just as the orange exploded.. Chunks of orange went flying everywhere. When the proverbial smoke cleared, Simon and Jeanette opened their eyes. "Are you okay?" Simon asked. "Yeah." Simon stood up, causing a lump of orange goop to fall off his back. Simon looked around. His lab was plastered with bits and pieces of orange. "Damn it!" Simon shouted. "We were so close! Why? Why did it have to go and blow up?!" "Well… we did get close." "In situations like this, close doesn't cut it, Jeanette. Damn it! I thought for sure we had it. The way to end world hunger was in our grasp. What did I do wrong? Where are my notes? I have to know." "I think the problem is your tired, Simon. You might've miscalculated because your tired. You've been working non-stop for the pass few days. You need a break." 'What I need is to get this experiment to work." "Yo, Simon!" They heard Alvin call. "I'm coming down, man. You and Jean better be decent!" Alvin walked down the stairs. "What the hell happened here?" "Don't ask." Simon said, angrily. Alvin asked anyway." Experiment backfire?" " 'sigh' Yes." "I see. So, what is all this gunk?" "Orange." "Orange? Where did you get you get to make all this?" "I only used one orange." 'Okay, you lost me." "Simon and I have been working on an experiment that we hoped would end world hunger. Basically, we built a machine, based on Simon's designs, that blast food with a, I guess you'd call it, 'growth ray'. And, obviously, that would make the food expand and hopefully become large enough to feed a whole family, instead of one person." " I see. So, let me guess. It worked real well for a while, then all of sudden, everything went to hell." "That's about the size of it." "Damn, it was so close." Simon said, sounding fatigued. "Man, Simon, you sound wiped. You should take a break." 'That's what I said, but he wouldn't listen to me." "You didn't listen to Jeanette? Okay, now I know you gotta be feeling off." "I'm fine, Alvin!" "Whoa, whoa. Take it easy. We're just watchin' out for ya." "'Sigh' Look, I appreciate your concern, but as I've already told you, I'm fine…" Alvin walked up and grabbed Simon by the neck, pulling him down to his level and out of ear shot for Jeanette. "Listen, Sy. You can tell me your fine till your face is as blue as your shirt, but I'm not gonna buy it. I know you, and so I know what to listen for to tell if your tired. And I'm hearing every single sign that tells me your tired. Look, I know your out to save the world and all but, your only one mere mortal. You need to rest every once in a while." "But, Alvin.." "Ah, I'm not done yet. Listen, you are tired and need a break. And I'm not gonna let you say no. So listen. Here's why I came down here in the first place. You heard the phone ring earlier, right?" "Yeah." "Well, that was Todd. Now, here's what Dave told me. He said that Todd finally sealed the deal on a gig he started to set up for us the other day. We're gonna perform at the grand opening of this new club. It's some kind of fusion of a dance hall and a swanky restaurant. Anyway, we're set to perform tomorrow. Dave said that Todd said that the people running the whole thing said that they don't care what we sing, just so long as we sing songs that have a good beat. Now, here's a problem. Dave found out that the part of town that this club is gonna open in, we've never been to before. So, Dave wants us to go there today, and check it out. Familiarize ourselves, you know? But, that's not the best part. Dave also found out that this place is really close to a prime stretch of beach. The surf is supposed to always be killer, there's tons of room for sunbathing, volleyball, heck, even building sandcastles if you want. Just a killer piece of beach. And, Dave said that, after we're done getting familiar with the area, we can go to this beach and spend of the rest of the day there. But, believe it or not, that's not even the best part. The best part is that Brittany said that she's gonna try to talk the girls into wearing those bikinis we like. Think about it Simon. A day at an awesome beach, and Jeanette wearin' that sexy bikini you like. Come on man, what do you say?" "Well, I do like exploring parts of the city I haven't been to yet, and a day the beach does sound like a lot of fun.. And I can't deny that I'd love to see Jeanette in that Bikini again...hmmm, alright. I'm in. But, I should clean up the lab first." "Well, we got twenty minutes until Dave wants to leave, so let's go get the power washer or something and get to work." "Right." "Hey, jeanette, you still down here?" Brittany called. Brittany came down stairs. "What in the world happened here?" "Nothing to worry your pretty little head over, Brittany. Come on, Alvin." "Right. Yo, Dave! We gotta talk to you!" Alvin yelled as he and Simon headed up stairs. 'Wait a minute! Simon!" "Let it go, Britt." Jeanette said. "No way! I wanna know what's going on! The lab is covered in some kind of gunk, and the whole place smells like oranges. Yo, Simon!" "I said let it go, Brittany!" Jeanette yelled, angered by the fact that Brittany wouldn't listen to her. But, she quickly caught herself and covered her mouth. "Jeanette?" "I- I'm sorry. I, I didn't mean to yell. It's just that.. It's just that it's not that big a deal, you know." "Why did I explode on Brittany like that? I don't normally do that. Are my hormones acting up or something? What's wrong with me?" Jeanette thought. "Ookay. Well, listen. We gotta to this one part of town, which we haven't been to before, in order to familiarize ourselves. And then, we're gonna go to the beach. And, I thought it might be fun to wear those sexy little bikinis for the boys. What do you think?" "W-w-well, I, I don't normally get a chance to be 'sexy' for Simon, so, I guess I'm down for it." "Great. Let's go get Ely and head home real quick. Hey, maybe we should we have mom call Xavier and have him and Vinny come with us." "Good idea. It's been a while since we hung out with them." "Yeah. Alright, let's go."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

( Later that day) "Whoa!" was all Brittany could muster as she eyed the building. The munks, along with Dave and Miss Miller, had arrived at the building they would be singing at tomorrow. It was a huge place, far larger than any other club they had ever been to. In fact, they were certain that any club they had ever been to would fit easily in this place. "Boys, we have arrived." Alvin said. "We're playing huge places like this…we have definitely arrived." 'We've already arrived, Alvin. Or, did you forget that we're not even fourteen yet and we already have a record label with our name on it? We 'arrived' a long time ago." Cash said. "Yeah, before you were around to make me look like an idiot." Alvin muttered. "What was that?" "I said why don't you go ask if they'll let us in? Get a sneak preview you know?" "Oh, well, alright. I'll be right back." Cash went to see if was around and if they'd let them in. "Huh, Cash doing what I say for once. Feels good." Alvin thought, a grin sneaking across his face. Cash came back a moment later. "We're in luck. A janitor was here giving the place the once over before tomorrow, and he said it was fine for us to go in. But, we had to take our shoes off, since he just washed the floor and doesn't want to take any chances of us tracking in dirt." 'Well, that's reasonable. Let's go." Simon said. "Damn. I thought he'd have to come back with a sorry look and tell us we couldn't go in. Man, why does he have all the luck?" Alvin thought. but, he followed the others in regardless. "Man, it's even bigger on the inside. Seriously, who is paying for all this?" Brittany said. "Well, kids, now that you've seen the place, do you have any ideas on what to sing?" Dave asked. "I have an idea." Cash said. He walked over to the corner of the room they were in. "We'll be set up right about here, right?" "Yup. Right no the money, Cash." Dave said. "Alright. Tell me how this sounds from there." Cash began to hum loudly. He was humming 'if today was your last day' by Nickelback. "Sounds great, Cash." Simon said. "Alright then, there's one. Dave, your writing these down right?" "Oh yeah." Dave pulled out his phone and went to it's note pad function. 'Okay, song number one: if today was your last day, originally sung by Nickelback. Alright, what else?" 'Well, I have an idea." Katrina said. She walked over and stood next to Cash. She began to hum Miley Cyrus's 'party in the U.S.A.'. "How's that sound?" "That sounds great. Girls, do you want that to be one of your songs?" Dave asked. The girls nodded. "I want lead on that one." Brittany said. "Actually, Britt." Cash said. "I think Ely might sound just a little bit better on that one. After all, her pitch is closer to Miley's anyway." "Well, Ely, do you want lead?" Brittany said. 'Well…" "I'll take that as a no. Okay, moving on.' 'But.." Eleanor started, but Brittany was already humming another song, so she couldn't hear her. Cash came walking over. "Sorry, Ely. I tried." "I know Cash. But, well, you know Brittany." "Yeah. Sometimes I think her need to be in the spotlight is pathological. Like, she's subconsciously driven to steal as much spotlight as she can." "Well, she does have monophobia. Maybe that's the reason." "Yeah, but, I think you deserve some spotlight. You should have spoke up." "I know. Thanks for trying. You're a good friend, Cash." "Friend?" 'Oh, I mean brother. You're a good brother." 'Thank you. And for what it's worth, I think you would have done a lot better on that song." "Really? Well, thanks." The munks continued to think of songs to play. Jeanette suggested they try the song 'evacuate the dance floor' by Cascada. The other munks weren't so sure about it, since they didn't know exactly how well known Cascada was and they didn't want people who didn't know the band to mistakenly think that the song was a new chipmunks original. But, Jeanette insisted it was a good song, so they decided to throw it on the list and go for it. If something happened, they'd just have to give an explanation and that would settle things. Next, Alvin said he'd like to do the Smash mouth song 'All star', which led to Cash suggesting another of that band's hit song 'everyday superhero'. Dave put both songs on the list. Eventually, the munks had a list of twelve song. Six for the boys and six for the girls. They decided on so many because they didn't know exactly how long the owners of the club wanted them to sing yet, so they figured the more the better. Finally, Alvin clapped his hands together and said 'Okay, I feel good and acquainted with this place. Now, let's go to the beach!" "Yeah, let's go!" the rest of the munks yelled. "Alright, alright. Let's go." Dave said. "Oh, boys, before I forget, the girls had me call Xavier and he said he and Vinny would love to join us at the beach and they would meet us there. They just had to stop at one of Xavier's stores to check on a few things and then they would meet us there." Miss Miller said. "Great. Well, we'd better get going, or they'll beat us there." Cash said. Everyone hurried to the beach and the munks rushed into the changing rooms, while Dave and Miss Miller went to find a good spot to set their things. The chipmunk boys were the first ones out. "Where are the girls?" Theodore said out loud. "Yoohoo, oh boys!" Eleanor called. The boys looked and saw the girls, wearing their favorite bikinis. The boys pretended to get weak kneed and began to sway. "Be still my heart." Alvin kidded as he looked at Brittany. This caused the pink clad chipette to giggle. Alvin suddenly turned towards the beach and said "Last one in the water is a rotten egg!" And so began the race to the water. When they were mere inches from the water, all of the chipmunks jumped into the water, so as not to be last one in. 'It's an eight way tie!" Eleanor yelled. The munks began to enjoy themselves. An hour later, Vinny and Xavier arrived. "Hey, mom!" Alvin called. "Hi, dear." Alvin, Simon and Theodore came running out of the water to greet their mother. Cash took longer, as he was swimming out in deeper water. But, even at the distance he was at, he could still recognize his mother. He could recognize her anywhere. He began to swim fast and hard, trying to make it to shore. He finally got to the point where he could stand up and begin walking out of the water. Cash within five feet of his mother when he heard the strange voice from yesterday again. "Cash!" "Not again.' Cash thought. "Cash, you must hurry. The evil one is near. You must awaken, or you will be destroyed!" Cash was distracted by this voice long enough not to notice a huge wave coming up behind him. Vinny happened to look up at just the right time. "Oh, hello, baby. How..are..you? Cash, look out!" She shouted as she finally noticed the wave. Cash was rocketed back to reality in time to go 'huh?' before he was slammed by the wave. Cash disappeared under the water. "Oh no! Please lord, don't let the water take my baby away again." Vinny prayed. The water subsided and Cash reappeared. 'Cash!" Everyone yelled. Katrina ran forward and flipped Cash over, as he was laying on his face. "Cash? Cash!" Cash didn't respond. The force of the massive wave had knocked him out. Katrina immediately began CPR, assisted by Brittany. Eventually, they got Cash to start breathing again. He came to, violently coughing up water. "Son 'cough' of 'cough' a 'cough' bitch!" Cash eventually got his air back and coughed the last bit of water up. "Damn! How do waves get that big this close to shore? Ah man, I think I got water around my brain." "That's not possible." Simon said. 'Simon, are you the one with about a liter of water in each of his ears?' "No, I'm not." "Right, I am. So please don't start telling me what's not possible right now. Ah man." 'Well, look at it this way, Cash. At least now you don't have to wash your ears out for about a year." Alvin said. 'Shut up, Alvin." Katrina said. "Seriously. This is the second time in his life that your brother has almost drowned, and your cracking jokes? What's wrong with you?" Katrina asked. 'Well, I, I was just trying to….I'll shut up now." "Note to self, don't crack jokes on Cash when Kate is around." Alvin thought. "Ah, don't be so hard on Al, Kate. That's just his way of helping. He's just trying to lighten the mood, that's all." "Maybe we ought to go home." Simon said. 'Cause of what? One rogue wave hitting me? No way, Simon. That was a freak accident. Kinda like what you claim my trip around the world was." "It was!" "Yeah, yeah, I know that, you know that, we all know that. And, we all know that that wave hitting me was just another freak accident. So, let's forget about this and enjoy ourselves." Cash said, putting on an honest smile. "That's our Cash." Theodore said. 'Yeah, he almost drowns and still able smile." Eleanor said. 'Amazing." Jeanette said. Nearby, a man, who was watching the chipmunks, sighed a sigh of relief. "Phew, thought we needed a new eighth chosen one there for a second. Thank you, God. But, I don't think that wave was natural. Waves don't stay that big this close to shore. Oh please, God. Please tell me he had nothing to do with that. I'd better call Iza and ask if he can do that kind of thing."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

( The next day) "Okay, everybody ready?" Cash asked. The chipmunks were about to come on stage and perform at the club. The rest of the munks nodded. "Alright, let's do this." Cash faced the exit of the curtain. "Come on. Say our name! Call us out. I'm so bored, I need to get out there." he thought. He couldn't explain why, but ever since the defeat of the Franklin siblings, Cash found himself getting bored far more easily. He pined for something to do Something to burn off all his extra energy. He planned to give a hundred and twenty percent in this show. But, deep down, he knew that it wouldn't be enough. What he really wanted, was to fight some one. But not just anyone. He wanted to fight and defeat a villain, which would make him a hero again. What Cash wanted, was to be a hero again. But, he feared that, if he spoke his wish out loud, something bad would happen to his family. So, he kept it locked up inside himself. He focused his line of vision on the host of the event. "Maybe if I concentrate hard enough, maybe I can make him introduce us." Cash was well aware of the fact that he didn't have any psychic powers, let alone the power of mind control, but with his boredom driving him crazy, he was willing to try anything. "Come on! Introduce us! Introduce us!" Suddenly, the host said " And now, the moment you've all been waiting for. Ladies and gentlemen…The chipmunks!" The curtains opened, the chipmunks shut their eyes and walked forward. Cash went to the main microphone, adjusted the guitar that hung from his shoulder and began to play the opening of 'if today was your last day.' The rest of the band chimed in as he began to sing. Alvin and Simon took up their guitars and Theodore began to drum. The girls began to dance. "My best friend gave me, the best advice. He said each day's a gift and not a given right. Leave no stone unturned, leave your fears behind, and try to take the path less traveled by. That first step you take, is the longest stride. If today was your last day and tomorrow was too late, could you say goodbye to yesterday? Would you live each moment like your last? Leave old pictures in the past? If today was your last day." The crowd began to say along to beat. And so the show had begun. When they got to 'party in the U.S.A', Cash listened closely. "Yup, I was right. Ely would've done better." And while she danced in the background, Eleanor thought 'That should be me, not Brittany." But, these thoughts did not distract the young performers for long. They prided themselves on professional, but fun, performances. Today's would be no different, no matter what. Eventually, they got to the song 'evacuate the dance floor'. To the chipmunks surprise, the crowd roared with excitement upon hearing the song. It was like the crowd was made of Cascada fans. Eventually, the chipmunks played through their list of twelve songs. Twelve proved to be the magic number because, just as the chipmunks finished their last song, dinner was served in the restaurant portion of the club. The munks were invited to stay for dinner. They were told it was on the house, so naturally, they stayed and ate. When they finished, they left. "So, what do you kids want to do now?" Dave asked. " I don't know, nor do I really care. Anything's good with me. I just want to go somewhere and chill out for a bit." Cash said. "Well, there's a park nearby. You guys want to go there to unwind?" "Sure." Most of the munks said. Simon was the only one. "Actually, Dave. I'd rather go home. I have some work to do." "Simon?" Alvin asked. "Yes, Alvin?" 'Just thought I'd remind you, the lab is still sticky from the, uh, 'incident', yesterday. So, you can't do any work. Not until we 'desticky' everything." "Okay, first off, Alvin, 'desticky' is not a word. And secondly, I got up early and cleaned the rest of the lab. It is no longer sticky, so I can work." "Yeah, well, I'm not going to let you. It's a tradition for us to go somewhere and chill out for a bit after a show. And I'm not going to let you break tradition." "Since when has that been a tradition? Granted, we do do that a lot, but since when is it a tradition?" "Since right now, and because I said so." "So your word's law now?" "It is until you stop sounding' tired." " 'sigh' There's no way I can talk my way out this, is there?" 'Nope." " 'sigh' fine. Let's go, Dave." "Alright. Next stop, the park. Jeanette, who happened to be sitting next to Alvin nudged him and then mouthed the words 'thank you'. Alvin returned by mouthing 'no sweat'. The chipmunks soon arrived at the park and began to wander around. Theodore and Eleanor walked over to the swing set, and Eleanor asked Theodore to push her, which he, of course, did. Simon sat down at a table Jeanette. He could heard mumbling something about not being allowed to continue work on his project. Jeanette told him it was for the best, because he did still sound tired. Alvin wandered over to a fence and found a foot ball. "Hey, guys! Check it! Some sap lost a perfectly good football. Oh well, mine now. Hmmm, yo Cash!" 'What?" "Go long!" Cash nodded and took off running. Alvin threw the ball as hard as he could and it flew towards Cash. Cash caught it and then stopped. "Now what?" He yelled. Alvin turned towards Theodore and Simon. "Hey guys. Two on two football! Let's go!" Simon mumbled about he didn't want to play any football, but Jeanette insisted the exercise would be good for him, so he went to play anyway. "Uh, Ely?" Theodore asked. "Go on. I know how to keep myself moving on the swing." Theodore nodded and ran off to join Simon. "Okay, that black trash can down there is our goal line, and that one blue one back there is yours." Alvin explained. "Simon and Theodore nodded. The boys got into standard hiking formation. Cash hiked the ball to Alvin and took off running. Alvin threw the ball to Cash, Cash caught it and ran full steam towards his and Alvin's goal line. Simon and Theodore ran as fast as they could to catch up, and began to close In. Alvin saw this and started running faster. He came up just behind Cash and called out to him. "Cash! Pass the ball!" But, Cash didn't hear Alvin, because, he was being contacted by the strange voice again. 'Cash!" "No! No, no, no!" Cash screamed inside his head, trying to cast the voice away. Cash looked back at Alvin. Alvin happened to be saying Cash's name, right as the voice called Cash's name again. In his confused state of mind, Cash thought Alvin was somehow the one doing the voice, so he turned around and tackled his red clad brother to the ground. "Whoa, Cash! Same team, man! Same team!" "I know it's you." "What?" "I've been hearing this weird voice for the past few days. And I know you love messing with me. So, I put two and two together. I know it's you doing the voice. I don't know how your doing it, but you'd better stop." "What are you talking about, man? I mean, that sounds like a good prank and all but, I swear it isn't me. Now, get off me." Cash got off of Alvin and headed towards the car. "Let's go home." "Uh, Cash?" Katrina asked. He didn't seem to hear her, so she ran off to talk to him. Brittany walked over and helped Alvin up. "What's up with him?" 'I don't know. But, I think he's starting to lose it." "Did I hear him right?" Simon, who was nearby, asked. "He said you've been messing with him by talking to him behind his back in a weird voice?' 'Uh, yeah. Something like that." 'Well, you should stop then." "Sy, it isn't me, I swear. I mean, I'm kind of ticked at myself that I've never thought to do that." "Well, if it's not you, then where is this voice he's hearing coming from?"


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

( The next day) Boom! An explosion ripped through the house, with it's epicenter in the lab. "Everything's okay!" Simon yelled. "Just a minor overreaction. Nothing to worry about!" The other chipmunks, in their respective positions around the house, all shook their heads. Simon was lucky Dave had left the house earlier. Simon came out of the lab. His face was covered in something that looked like soot. Whatever had exploded in the lab, it had covered his face in this soot. He walked into the kitchen, washed his face off, then got a paper towel, wetted it down and went to work on cleaning his glasses. He walked into the living room, not noticing Theodore sitting in the near by chair. Simon sat down on the couch and focused on cleaning his glasses. He happened to look up and noticed Theodore. 'Oh, hey, Theo." 'Hey, Sy. You okay?" "Yeah, I'm fine." " Good. Uh, is the lab okay?" "Yeah, everything's still in one piece." 'Okay. So, what was that explosion?" "I was mixing some chemicals for the experiment I was working on, and I accidentally used too much of one of them, and it caused a very violent reaction." "Which lead to the explosion." "'sigh' Yeah." "Well, at least your alright. All's well that ends well, right?" "Not exactly." "What do you mean by not exactly?" "Well, since I found out the hard way that the use of energy manipulation technology isn't the way to end world hunger, I got to thinking. How do farmers make their crops grow bigger?" 'Tender loving care?" "Well, that's part of it, yes. But, what I thought was 'chemicals'. They treat their crops with fertilizers, which are laced with special growth enhancing chemical compounds. So, I thought, what if I created a growth enhancing chemical compound that would royally trounce all others? I figured I could, and that it would be far more stable way to do it. The method's already been proven to be effective, so I thought I'd just give it the proverbial shot in the arm. If I can get this right, this compound can mixed with the worlds fertilizers and make crops grow very large, very quickly, but do it safely." "Okay." Theodore said, trying to wrap his head around what his brother was talking about. The only compounds he knew of all had something to do with baking or cooking. "But, enough about me." Simon said. 'What are you doing?" "Oh, I'm reading my latest copy of Green Lantern." "Oh, that's right. You signed up to get that in the mail not to long ago. So, what's good old Hal Jordan up to?" "You know the main character's name?" 'I don't have my nose buried in a text book all the time, Theo. Despite what you, Cash and Alvin might think." "I never said that, Sy. Your speaking for me…again." "Oh, heh, heh. Well, anyway, what's green lantern up to?" "well, right now he's trying to save the universe from the black lanterns." "Black lanterns?" "Yeah, it's the color choice is kinda stereotypical. Black represents evil. But, what are you gonna do?" 'Well, at least there are people both in the real world and in the comic book world that prove that just because they wear black, doesn't mean their evil." 'Like Cash?" 'Exactly. But, anyway what are these black lanterns doing that's so bad that the Green Lantern has to get involved." "Oh, well, see the black appear in this new crossover called 'blackest night'. It's kinda complicated, but, suffice it to say that, unlike normal lantern rings, that seek the next person who fit the bill after the current wearer dies, the black rings actually search for dead people. See, the punch into peoples' tombs, slide onto their dead fingers, bring them back as zombies, but in a lot better shape than your normal zombies, and give them back any super powers they had, along with their memories from when they were alive." "Okay, why?" "Well, see, this one guardian, the immortal people that watch over all the green lanterns, has an accident that ends up affect his mind. And, once his brain is really far gone, he starts to unleash the powers of darkness, and that involves creating and sending out these black rings. And, basically, he hopes to use the powers of darkness and death to take over the universe." " Okay, but that doesn't explain why it gives the dead people back their memories." "Oh ,that's so they remember who they were closet too, and who'll the easiest targets for an attack." "Attack?" "Yeah. See, the black lanterns wanna feed, like all zombies do, but they feed on the energy people let off with their emotions. Matter of fact, one power they all share is the ability to tell what emotion a persons feeling by looking at them." "How?" "Well, they see a particular coming off a person. Like, if the person is angry, they see red, and if the person is afraid, the black lanterns see a yellow colored light coming off of the person." "Hmm, what other colors are there? And for what emotions?" 'Well, lately they've been adding other kids of lanterns. Before, there was just the green and the yellow, who represented willpower and fear respectively." "Right." "Well, now they've got red lanterns, who represent rage. Blue lanterns, who represent hope. Orange lanterns, who stand for greed. Violet lanterns, who stand for love. And indigo lanterns, who represent compassion." "Hmm, so red is anger, blue is hope, orange is greed, violet is love, and indigo is compassion. And, as it's always been, yellow is the color of fear. But, I don't get why will power is represented." "Cause the green power of will is the power that keeps all the other powers in check.' "Ah, okay. So, once they see whatever color light coming off of a person, what do they black lanterns do?" "They make that person keep feeling that emotion. You know, make it stronger. Like, if the person is angry, they keep making them angrier. If they're afraid, they keep scaring them. And they keep this up until the person's heart is filled to the brim with a particular emotion and then they use their black rings power to remove the person's heart from their body, so they can feed off of the emotional energy inside it." "Wow. Getting worked into an emotional frenzy, then having your heart ripped out by a zombie. Heck of a way to go. That sounds a little too violent for you read, Theodore. I mean, you don't like fighting. You only fight if you have to." 'Well, I told Alvin that I thought this sounded kinda cool, but a little violent, and Alvin told me that, since the violence isn't real, it shouldn't bother me. And you know what? He was right. Now, I'm just enjoying the story." 'Hmm, I see. Well, good for you then." "Hey Simon?" "Yeah." " Quick Hypo…hypo.." "Hypothetical?" "Yeah that. Say the different lantern rings were real, and a bunch were headed for earth. Headed for the eight of us. Who do you think would get what ring?' "Hmm, well, I think you and Eleanor, and probably Jeanette, would indigo rings, since your all so nice to people. Katrina, she could be in line for an indigo ring, but I think, more likely, she'd get a violet ring. I've never seen someone so full of love." "Yeah. What about you?" "Well, I'd love to say I'd get a green ring, but if I'm not mistaken, you have to be practically fearless to get one of those. And, while I'm no coward, I don't think I'm brave enough for one of those. So, I don't what one I'd get." "I think you'd get a blue ring, for hope. Cause, your trying to end world hunger, and no matter how many times you fail, you don't give up. Which means you believe it can be done. So, that must mean that your full of hope." "Huh, I never thought of that. Thank you, Theodore." "No problem. So, what rings do you think Alvin, and Brittany, and Cash would get?" "Well, I hate to say it, but, I think Alvin and Brittany, as it stands right now, would get orange rings." "Hmm, yeah. I guess. They are still kinda full of themselves." "Yeah." "So, what about, Cash?" "He's the only one that I think would get to be a green lantern." "Yeah, he fit's the bill." 'Yeah. But, I wonder how long he could keep it." "What do you mean?" "Well, don't you have to be stable to be a green lantern?" "Stable? Oh, you mean mentally?" "Yeah. I mean, you heard him yesterday. Something is happening in his mind." "I think he's just overly stressed for some reason." "Hmm, you may be right. And, if that's the case, then it's our job as his brothers to help him relax." "Huh, didn't think I'd here Simon seriously talk about relaxing. Not with the way he's been acting lately." Theodore thought. "Yeah. So, what do you think we should do?" "Well, Cash did mentioned that he'd like to borrow a couple of books I have. And, reading a good book helps me ease my mind at night when I'm having trouble sleeping. So, I think I'll go round up those books, and give them to him." 'Good idea. And, I'll, uh…oh! I'll go make him a big tray full of his favorite food." "Good call, Theo." "Thanks. Alright, let's do this." And so, Simon headed up stairs to his room and Theodore headed into the kitchen. On his way to Cash's room, Simon stopped by Alvin's room. 'Hey, Alvin." "Oh, hey Sy. You okay? I mean, I heard you yell that everything was okay, but…" "I'm fine, Alvin. My face and glasses got a little dirty. But, I've cleaned them both off and everything's back to normal." "Okay, good. So, what do you need? I know you wouldn't come in here for no reason." "Well, Theodore and I are worried about Cash, since he said what he did yesterday." "Yeah, that sounded a little nuts." 'Yes, I can't deny that it did. Theodore and I believe he might be over stressed somehow, so we're doing our best to help him relax. Theodore's in the kitchen, making Cash his favorite food and I've gathered together all of my books that Cash said he'd like to read. Can you think of anything that you could do that would help Cash relax?" "Hmm, well…oh! Yeah, I got just thing. Give me a minute to get it ready." Simon didn't notice a mischievous grin begin to form in the corner of Alvin's mouth "Okay. Get on it. Hey, Cash!" Simon called as he walked towards Cash's room. "Oh yeah, I've got just the thing to help Cash "relax'." Alvin thought. Meanwhile, Cash was on his computer, looking up mental conditions that typically affect normal Chipmunks. He was worried that the voice he was hearing might be a sing that he might be being affected by an advanced form one of those conditions. However, when heard Simon call his name, he quickly exited out of the page and called back. "Come on in, Sy. It's not locked." Simon came in. 'Hey, Sy. What's up?" "Oh, well, I finally gathered up those books you said you'd like to read. So, here they are." "Okay, thanks." "Your welcome. Well, I'd better get back to work." " Okay. Uh, hey, Sy?" "Yeah?" "Take it easy down there, okay? I'd hate to have to peel off the wall." "Okay. I'll try to ease up a bit." "That's all I'm asking." "Alright. Well, see ya." 'See ya." As soon as Simon was gone, Cash walked over to the pile of books. "Yeah, some good reading will clear my head. So, what looks good?" Cash picked up a very large book. "Advanced physics…uh, no. If I read that, my brain would explode. Simon must've put that one in there by mistake. Let's see, what else is in here? Wait a second. Is that? Haha, it is. It's a copy of kingdom come. I knew Simon secretly liked comics." Kingdom come was a classic dc comics monetization. It's basic premise was that Superman and other old guard heroes like him had gone into hiding for one reason or another years ago, and some new more violent heroes took over. However, when things start going down hill, Superman and the others must return, to a very different world.. "Yeah, this'll do nicely." Cash laid down on his bed and began to read. He read for a good ten minutes when his eyes began to feel heavy. He yawned, set the book down on the night stand, and started to take a nap. It was around this time that Alvin snuck into Cash's room, carrying a bowl full of warm water. "I knew reading Simon's books would put him to sleep. Oh, man, this gonna be great. The oldest trick in the book." Alvin sat the bowl down carefully on the nightstand and tried to lift Cash's hand into it. However, he applied just a little bit too much pressure on Cash's wrist. It was just enough to wake Cash. Cash's eyes snapped open and Alvin said "Uh-oh." "What are you doing, Alvin?" Cash asked. "Uh, helping you relax?" Cash looked over to the bowl. "Really? The warm water trick?" "Uh…" Cash bolted up and pinned Alvin to the fall. Simon and Theodore heard the thud and came to investigate. 'Cash, what are you doing?" Theodore asked. "Nothing right now, but I'm about to kick Alvin's sorry ass all over the house." "But, why?" "He tried to pull the 'hand in the bowl of warm water' trick." "What?" Simon said. 'Alvin, I told you help him relax, not play a joke on him. "But, he would've been relaxed. Really relaxed. Heh heh.' Cash's fist began to shake. He threw a punch at Alvin's face, but purposefully missed and the wall just to the right of Alvin's head.. "Whoa!" Simon yelled. 'Did you hear that thud?" Theodore said. "Whoa, man. If that had been my face…" Alvin thought. "I've had it Alvin. If you mess with me, one more time…well let's just say, I won't miss next time." Cash released his grip on Alvin shirt and turned around. "I gotta get out of here. If I stay, I'll just end up kickin' Alvin's ass. I'm goin' out. I'll be back in a bit." Cash grabbed his phone and wallet and left the house. He headed for Xavier's mansion. "You see what you did, Alvin?" Simon asked. 'Hey, what about me? Man, if he'd hit me, he would've broke my nose for sure." "You would've deserved it. Seriously, Alvin. He's already not feeling well, and you just have to keep pushing him closer and closer to the brink. What's wrong with you?" "Yeah." Theodore said. 'We're his brothers. We're supposed to help him feel better, not worse. Don't you know what the word brother means?" " I don't think he does, Theo. I don't think he does." "But, guys, I was just trying to.." Simon and Theodore shook their heads and walked out of the room, leaving Alvin lone to contemplate what had just happened. Meanwhile, Cash had reached Xavier's. Vinny greeted him. 'Oh, Cash!" "Hey mom." "Come in, baby. Come in. Um, where are your brothers?" "It's just me this time, mom." 'Oh, well, come in and sit down." Cash came in and sat down in the parlor. "Xavier!" Vinny yelled. "What is it, Vinny?" "Cash is here to visit." "Oh, I'll be right there." Xavier quickly joined them. 'well, hello, Cash." "Hey, X." "what's wrong, Cash? You sound a little irritated." "I am." 'Why?" "Alvin." "Oh, boy. What's he done now?" "What hasn't he done? He's been pullin' joke after joke on me, ever since we went to that fortune tellers place down on Newton. Ever since he heard that my 'character card sign' was called the fool, he's been doing his best to make me look like one. I mean, just a few minutes ago, he tried to pull the old 'hand in the warm water' trick on me. Man. I've had it up to here with him. I had to get out of there, or I would've beat the living hell out of him. So, that's why I'm here. To cool off." "Oh, I hate it when you boys fight." Vinny said. "I know, but, Alvin just has to pres my buttons." Cash stayed a while with his Xavier and his mother. However, after about a half hour, his phone rang. "Hello?" Cash answered. "Cash, it's Simon. Listen, Dave's back and he wants you back. He's got some news and he wants you to be here to hear it." "Alright, I'm on my way."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Cash walked down the street, back to his house. When he reached his house, he noticed that Ms. Miller's car was in the drive the way. "Huh. I guess the girls got the urge to see us. But, why'd they have Ms. Miller drive them?" Cash was pondering this when he walked in the door. "Oh, there you are, Cash." Dave said. Judging by his stance and his tone, Cash was certain Dave had been standing there in the hall, waiting for him to get back. "Hey, Dave. Sorry I wasn't home when you got back but…" "I know. Alvin. Simon and Theodore told me everything." "Oh, well, Al didn't really get a chance to do anything so, I guess I shouldn't be punished, or at least not too badly. If anyone should be punished, it should be me. I mean, I lost my temper and almost punched a hole in the wall." "But did you actually make a hole?" "No, I don't think so.' 'Well then, by using the same logic you used to figure out that Alvin shouldn't punished, I figure you shouldn't either. Just don't go punching walls anymore, Ok? Alvin promised me he wouldn't mess with you anymore, so promise me you won't go around punching walls or trying to put your brother's lights out, no matter how tempted you might be, ok?" "Okay, Dave." "Good. Now, your nice and calm again right?" "Yeah." "Good, I need you to stay that way for a while." "Huh?" "Come with me, Cash." Cash followed Dave into the living room. He discovered the rest of his family, along Ms. Miller and the chipettes, sitting there waiting. "Alright, now that Cash is back, let's get down to business. Your probably wondering what this meeting is all about." Dave said. The munks nodded. 'Well, as the boys know, I went to see Todd today, since he called me early this morning. He told me that a the company that built the chipmunks records building called him last night. They want you to play a series of gigs, around the country, at a bunch of new amphitheaters they're opening or reopening this summer." 'Wow, really?" Brittany asked. Dave nodded. "Now, to seal the deal, we have to have a meeting with them, which as you know is our policy when something this complex is being considered. However, they have so much work to do, that they can't come here. And something like this really shouldn't be dealt with over the phone. No, only a face to face meeting seems right here. So, we said that, if they can't come to us, we'll go to them." "Cool. So, when are we leaving?" Alvin asked. "Sorry, Alvin. By we, I meant me, Todd and Miss Miller." "But why can't we come?" Simon asked. "We'll only be gone a day or so. So there's no sense in going as an army, when a little group will do. Besides, their headquarters is in a little, 'middle of nowhere' style town in southern California. You kids would be bored out of your skulls. And, I know you kids have a habit of getting into trouble when you get bored." "Really, Dave. You make it sound like we go looking for the trouble we get into when we're bored." Alvin said. "That's because it sure seems that way. Look, we'll only be gone a day or two. In the mean time, since you've all proven yourselves trust worthy enough to leave home alone, at least for the most part, we've come to a decision." "That's right. We're going to give you what most kids only dream of. The girls will stay here, safety in numbers after all, and then you have free reign of yourselves and the house while we're gone." "You mean we can do what ever we want, when ever we want?" Brittany asked. "Well, not everything. There are some things we don't want you do. At least, not until your older." all eight chipmunks sighed. 'By the way they're talking, you'd think that we all turn into a bunch of pervs when they're not looking." Alvin said. "Alvin!" Dave said. 'Well, that's how you sound. Seriously, you have no faith in us. We have better control over ourselves than that." "Look, we obviously don't want you to do those things, but for the most part, we just don't want you start doing things that could get you hurt or damage the house." "So, in other words, we can do just about anything we want, so long as it's safe." Simon said. "Yes, exactly." "Man, take all the fun out being left home alone, why don't you?" Alvin said. "You better keep quiet, Alvin." Cash said. "They're willing to trust us this much, and all they're asking in return is that we follow a few simple rules. I don't think this deal could get any better, so clam up while we still got it good." "Yes sir." Alvin said sarcastically. "I'm glad your okay with saying 'yes sir' to Cash, Alvin." Ms. Miller said. 'Why?" "Because we're leaving Cash in charge." 'What?!" "But, I thought we had free reign over ourselves." Simon said. 'You do. But, we thought it would be a good idea to have some one with good leadership skills to be on standby, just in case something happened." "Well, I got good leadership skills." Alvin said. "Yes, but, Cash's are just a little bit better." "Look, Alvin. I'm only in charge if something goes wrong. So, so long as we do our best to make sure that nothing goes wrong, everyone will eventually forget that I'm in charge. I mean, you know me. I'm not the type to order people around all the time. You know, so long as you stay safe, Dave and Ms. Miller want, I don't care what you do. You wanna stay up till two, watching TV and making out with Britt? Fine by me. In that situation, all I'd ask is that, if everyone else has already gone to bed, I'd just ask you to keep the volume on the TV and the making out down, so the rest of us can sleep. And if you wanna go some where.. um, we are allowed to leave the house, right Dave?" "Of course. Just lock it up and set the alarm if you all go out." "Okay. Now then, if you wanted to go somewhere, Al, I'd just ask where and then say 'have a good time'." "See, Alvin? Cash is gonna be an awesome leader." Eleanor said. "Yeah, just like he always is." Theodore said. "Yeah, fine, whatever. So, when are you leaving, Dave?" Alvin asked, getting more irritated by the minute. "Tomorrow morning. Around ten." "Okay, that gives us plenty of time to get all our stuff together." Katrina said. "Don't pack too much, girls. You'll only be here for a few days." "Right. We'll remember that. Um, by the way mom." "What is it, dear?" "Why are you going? I mean, Dave and Todd are the only ones who really deal with this kind of thing." 'I'm going because I have a very good friend who lives in the town we're going to, and I haven't seen her years. Girls, you remember when you met the ladies who were in my dance troupe a long time ago?" Miss Miller asked the original three chipettes. 'Yeah." They said. "Well, Rachel, the one who was wearing red when you first met her, lives in this town we're going to. And, as you know, it's been a while since I last saw her. So, I'm going for the chance to see her again and catch up." The girls nodded. "Is that a good enough reason for you, Katrina?" Eleanor asked. "Yup. I hope you have a good time, mom." 'I'll certainly try, sweet heart. Well, we should head home, so we can get ready." Hey, wait, how are we going to have them do sleeping arrangements?" Dave asked. "Well, I think I we proved ourselves during our camping trip, so I think it should be fine for us to sleep in the boys beds with them." Jeanette said. 'Yeah, we all have queen size beds any way. We've each got a whole half of a bed we don't use. The girls could take up those spaces." Simon said. 'Well, this is all about trusting you, so we'll trust you and say that's fine. Now, let's go girls. We'll see you all in the morning."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

(the next day) "Okay, kids. If all goes according to plan, we should be back late Sunday. We'll call if anything changes. Also, I already called Vinny, and she said that she and Xavier would pick you up and take you church Sunday." "You do have your church clothes, right girls?" Miss Miller asked. "Yup." The girls said. "Good. And you've got your keys incase you need back into the house, right?" "Yeah, but what about the alarm?" Eleanor asked. "Oh, right. Here." Miss Miller reached into her purse and pulled out a small keychain like device. "Here's the remote. Um, Kate, dear, I'll leave it with you." "Okay, mom. I'll keep it in my purse." "Alright. Well, now, you've got everything right?" The girls nodded. "Okay. Give me a hug." The four girls wrapped their arms around their mother. "I'll miss you, girls." "Ah, we'll see each other again real soon." Brittany said. Miss Miller nodded. "Boys?' Dave said. "What? You want a hug too, Dave?" Alvin asked. "No, I'm fine, Alvin. I was just going to ask you boys to promise me something." 'What's that Dave?" Simon asked. 'No fighting. Your going to be in the presence of four beautiful young ladies for the next few days, and it's not right to be fighting in front of them." "Oh, how little Dave knows about how much we've already seen." Katrina thought. " Promise me, boys." "We promise." All four chipmunk boys said. "Alright. Well, then, we should be good to go now. Oh, right. Cash." "Yeah?" Dave pulled out his wallet and gave Cash three twenties. "Just in case you need something. But, I don't think we're too low on groceries, so if you want, use that to go out to dinner at a nice place." "Okay. Thanks, Dave." "Alright, well, we'd better get going. Todd's probably out in the car, wondering what's taking so long. We'll see you later, kids." "Bye, Dave." All eight munks said. Dave headed for the door. Miss Miller turned to follow him, but not before waving good bye to the kids. They walked out to the car and got in. The chipmunks watched as the car drove off into the distance. When they couldn't see it anymore, Cash said 'And, they're gone. Okay, guys. House is ours. Do what you want.' Hours later. "Cash!" Theodore yelled from in the kitchen. Cash, who was in his room playing video games, yelled back 'What, Theo?" "Come here! We need you!' Theodore was in the kitchen with Eleanor. "Alright! I'm coming!" Cash paused his game and went to see what his little brother needed. As Cash walked into the kitchen, he walked past Katrina, who was watching TV in the living room. She didn't follow him into the kitchen, but she listened to the conversation. "What cha' need, Theo?" "We got a problem." "Oh, really? What?" "Check out the fridge." Cash shrugged and did as his little brother said. 'Now tell me what you don't see?" "Hmm, well, I don't see any milk, or cheese." "Exactly. Now check out the bread box." Cash examined the bread box. "A few sandwich buns and the ends of a loaf of bread that nobody ever eats." "Right! We have no milk, no cheese, and not enough bread to speak of.. And I checked the meat the drawer too. We're really low on hamburger, and we don't have any lunch meat Dave left us with out the essentials." "Well, he did have a lot of other things to worry about. It's no wonder he forgot to go to the grocery store. Oh, well. No real harm done. Guess we just gotta make a run to the store." "Well, you're the one with the money.' "Yup. Alright, make a list Theo. We're going shopping." "You want me to come with you?' Cash looked in the fridge again. "Oh, yeah, definitely. I was originally asking ya to come with me for the sake of company, but now I know I'm gonna need ya. See, you only scratched the surface, Theo. We're out of a lot more than you thought. There's no fruits or vegetables in here, and we're low on O J too. Let's see, what else isn't in here? ….Oh, come on. I can understand forgetting to buy milk or orange juice, but Dave forgot to buy pop too? Come on, he lives with four teenagers. Doesn't he know that's about all we drink? Oh boy. Man, Dave must've been in a bigger rush than we thought to forget this much. 'sigh' Theo.' "I know. I'm making a list." "Okay. I'm gonna go get my wallet and my phone." 'You guys mind if I come with you? I could use some fresh air, so you mind?" Eleanor asked. "Nope. The more the merrier." Cash said. 'So I can come too then?" They heard. They looked to see Katrina in the door way. "Kate, you were listening?' 'Well, I was just in the other room. Didn't you see me when you walked past, Cash?" "No, sorry. I guess I was just too focused on seeing what Theo needed." "Ah, no harm done. He did make it sound urgent. Well, I guess it is. We're not plants after all, we can't make our food out of sunshine. So, we have to go buy it. So, mind if I come along? I could carry some stuff." "Yeah, sure. You know I'd never turn down an offer like that from you." Cash said. Katrina smiled and nodded. "Well, we'd better tell the others we're going out." Cash went to the lab and knocked on the door. "Sy, you and Jean down there?" Cash called. "Yeah, why?" Simon called back. "Just making sure. Listen, Me, Theo, Kate and Ely are making a run to the store. Dave accidentally left the fridge under stocked. So, we're gonna go get what we need. Do you and jean wanna come?' "We're in the middle of an experiment, Cash." "So, no then. Okay. Well, do you want anything?" "I'm fine. Jean, do you need anything?' "Um, Cash?' "Yeah?" "I've got a craving for some Reese's cups. Could you get me some?" "Sure. Do you want the bag of miniatures or the regular set of two?" "The regular set is fine." "Okay, plain or white chocolate?" 'Either's fine." "Alright, sis. I'll get you your candy." "Thank you!" "Okay, now where are Al and Britt?" Cash figured that Alvin's room was the best place to start looking for them. As he walked up stairs, he heard guitar music. "That must be Al." Cash thought. He walked up to the room. Alvin had left the door wide open, so Cash could see him and Brittany in there. "Knock, knock." Cash said, tapping on the door frame. "Oh, hey, Cash." Brittany said. 'Hey. Listen, Me, Theo, Kate and Ely are making a run to the store. Dave left the fridge a little, well, lacking. So we gotta fill it up. You guys wanna come?" "Sorry, bro I'm busy practicing here." Alvin said, holding up the guitar. "Okay. Britt?" "I don't really feel like going out right now." "That's fine Well, do you want anything?" 'Could you get me some beef jerky?" Alvin asked. "Any particular brand?" 'Nah, just make sure it's teriyaki flavored." 'Okay. Brittany?" "No, I don't need anything." "Okay. We'll be back in a bit." Black, white and green clad chipmunks gathered together in the front hall and then left. As they headed out, a certain man was watching them from his car, parked about half way down the block. "Whoa, where are they going? And just four of them? Oh, man. Do I follow them, or stay here? Ugh. Better call Iza." The man pulled out his phone and dialed the mysterious fortune teller's number. 'Hello?" 'Iza, it's me again. Listen, I got a situation." 'What is it?' 'Well, four of them just the house. I don't know where they're going. The other four are staying home, I guess. But, that's my problem. I don't know who to watch. Do I follow the group that's headin' out, or stay where I am?" 'Hmm, who's in the group that's leaving?" "Uh, looks like Cash, Katrina, Theodore and Eleanor." "Follow them." "What? But, what about Alvin and the others?" "Considering that they're parents are gone, and all they have is each other right now, I doubt Cash and his group will be gone for very long. I think the four that still at home should be alright for that short an amount of time. But, as you know, Cash is carrying the most important piece of our plan. Which means his group is in far more danger of being attacked. So follow them." "Alright. Talk to you later." The man hung up and started his car. He drove as fast as he could to catch up with the munks, with out going too fast. He didn't want to draw attention to himself. If he did, his cover could be blown and after that, he didn't know what would happen. He knew he needed to keep watch over them, with out getting involved in their lives. At least, not yet. The man wondered why the process was taking so long. "Iza said it would be two to three days. It's been six now. Oh well. I guess even Iza can't predict everything." The man drove past the chipmunks and turned down the street in front of them He stopped in front of a house, which was not something strange for a car to do. The chipmunks didn't even seem to notice. He watched which way they went. They turned down the opposite end of the street he was on. So he went up one street, then down through some alleys to find them again. He made sure to stay on there backs, but stayed far enough away to not arouse suspicion. Eventually, he noticed them walk into the store. "The grocery store? Good. That place is full of people. Even if he was targeting them, he wouldn't attack them in a crowded store. It would draw too much attention to him and could potential ruin his plan." Meanwhile, in the store. 'Hey, Cash?" Theodore asked. "Yeah, Theo?" "Let me ask you something?" "Okay." "I've been meaning to ask this for a while, but it kept slipping my mind." "No problem. What is it?" "Um, don't get me wrong, I love having you around. But, I've been wondering this. Why did Agito have you come live with us? Why didn't he send you to live with Kimiko in Japan? I mean, I know he wanted you to get the chance to know us, but still, wouldn't it have been easier to send you to live with her?" "No, not really." 'Huh?" " See, Theo, we didn't have a lot of money. We weren't poor, but we weren't rich either. We just, got by. I mean, I got sixty bucks in my wallet right now, right?" "Far as I know." 'Right. Well, back then, I was lucky to have twenty on me. Back then, my cash kinda topped out at about fifteen bucks. I'm rich right now, compared to back then. And, Agito, well, he didn't have a lot of savings. Changes in his work union and the fire works factory he used to work in saw to that. His pension was cut back. And his retirement fund didn't last too long after that, cause of various reasons, most of which had to do with fixing problems with our house. So, we had to cut back. In the end, Agito saved enough to pay for his funeral and give me enough money to get to Hollywood. The cash he left me wasn't enough to fly me to Japan. Those are expensive tickets, in case you didn't know. So, money was one reason. But the most important reason was what you already said. I mean, why cross the globe to find a home, when you just need to cover a few hundred miles?" Theodore smiled and nodded. Some time later. "Okay, we got everything, right?" Cash asked. The others nodded. "Alright, let's get home before Jean's Reese's melt." "Yeah, and it's getting close to dinner time too." Theodore said. "You guys up for cooking for eight?" "I think we can handle, Cash." Eleanor said confidently. "Alright. Let's get out of here." The munks headed back home. "Yo, Iza. It's me. Yeah, they went to the store. Listen, I'm gonna follow them back and make sure they get home okay, then I'm gonna head back. That's okay, right?' 'Yeah. He never did like to go out after dinner. And he's not the kind of person to change habits like that." 'So they're safe after dinner time, huh?" "Yeah. Alright. Hey, did you check out that beach?" "Yeah, I didn't sense even the tiniest trace of his presence anywhere near there." 'So that really was a rogue wave that hit Cash?" "Yeah." 'Oh, man. Then I wasted your time. I'm sorry." "Hey, It's not a problem. In the situation we're in, it's easy to misinterpret something like that. And, the way I look at it, it proves your doing your job." "Heh, alright. Uh, hey, when is this process going to be over?" "I don't know. I thought it would two to three days. But, then again, I've never done anything like this before. I guess we just have to be patient and wait." 'Yeah, but, you've only got another two days before you lose control again, and you know when that happens, your out of it for three days. And, with out you around to ask, I won't know what to do if something happens." "Just do what your heart tells you is the right course of action. Everything will work out that way. But don't worry, you know them. It's taking a bit longer than we thought, but knowing them the way we do, it can't be too much longer." "I hope your right. Alright, I'd better get a move on. I'll see you later." 'See ya." Later at the Seville house. 'Dinner is served." Eleanor said. The munks sat down for dinner. Katrina looked around . "What's wrong Kate?" "Brittany asked. "I feel like I'm being watched again. Only this time, it feels, wrong. Like something evil is watching us." The chipmunks looked at each other with worried faces. Meanwhile, in the bad part of town, in a seedy motel room. "I finally found you. I knew if I used my power to scan the city long enough, I'd find you eventually. And now, I know exactly where you are. Hmm, what's this? I sense eight other life forces with them. Ah, so they've found some hosts. Hmph, well enjoy the ride while you can, my ethereal friends. For tomorrow, you are mine."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

(the next morning) " Mm, ugh." Cash groaned as he woke up. He rubbed his eyes to clear the 'sand' out, then opened them. When he did, he saw a half dressed Katrina sitting on the edge of the bed in front of him, her back to him. She had her pants and bra for the day on already, but she hadn't put her top on yet. She appeared to be putting her socks. "Uh…" Cash said, unintentionally. "Huh?" Katrina turned to see that Cash was looking at her. She then screamed. "C-cash!" "Wha! I'm sorry!" Cash said, covering his eyes. "I'm sorry, Kate. I wasn't peeping, I swear! Go ahead and finish. I can't see anything now, so go ahead." Katrina was about to say something, when a thought hit her that made her feel very stupid. "Wait a minute." She said. "What are we doing?" "Uh, I thought you were getting dressed, and I'm covering my eyes to give you that last moment of privacy you need." "Well, that's kinda stupid. I mean, you've seen me in a two piece bikini before. Which means you've seen this much of me before too." 'Yeah, that's true." "Well, then, this isn't that much different." "Guess not." "So why are you still covering your eyes? I'm not embarrassed about this anymore, so why are you?" 'I'm not." 'Then why are you still covering your eyes?" "I'm saving that particular view for later." "For later? Like when?" "Oh, I don't know. I was thinking of saving it for our future honeymoon. Don't wanna open the present early, ya know?" Katrina would've said something, but she was laughing too hard. This was all so funny to her. She laughed for a few seconds before Cash said "well?" 'Well what?" Katrina asked, trying to regain her composure. "Are you gonna put your top on? I'm giving you your privacy so go ahead." Katrina shrugged and put her top on. "Okay, I'm fully decent now." Cash then uncovered his eyes. 'Alright then. Morning babe." "Good morning." 'Did you sleep alright?" "Cash, I felt like I could sleep forever, so long as you stayed there next to me." Cash was surprised by this statement. He knew Katrina loved him deeply, but he didn't expect a line like that out of her. "What?" Katrina asked. 'Nothing, nothing. Uh, hey, you feel okay? I mean, last night, you know.." "Yeah. I feel okay now. I don't know what that was, Cash. But I definitely felt something. Something evil. I don't know where it was coming from, but that is the worst thing I have ever sensed. And I sensed you being rushed to the hospital after your run in with Ken. It just felt so wrong. So dark. It sent a shot of dread straight to my core." Cash nodded in understanding. He then said "But your fine now?" "Yeah. I don't feel anything right now." "Good. But, if you feel it again, tell me immediately. Those feelings of yours are pretty accurate and I don't wanna chance anything." Katrina nodded. She then said "I wish Dave and mom were gonna back tomorrow." 'Yeah, but, you can't control who gets sick." Last night, after dinner, Dave had called the munks. He said that a few of the people he and Todd needed to speak to were out sick, but would be back tomorrow. This meant that the meeting had to postponed until Sunday. Thus, Dave and, miss Miller and Todd wouldn't be back until Monday. " But, don't worry, Kate. I mean, you pretty much have everybody else that cares about you, at least in this city, under one roof. You know me, Al, Sy and Theo would do all we could if something happened. And your sisters, well, I Don't I think I need to say anything there." Katrina nodded. Cash put his arms around Katrina. "No matter what, I won't let anything happen to you." Katrina returned the embrace, but thought "But that's the problem." while doing so. They broke apart and Cash said "Alright then. Guess I should go get ready. Anybody in the bathroom?" "Not that I know of." "Alright. Time to hit the shower then." Cash gathered his clothes for the day and headed to the bath room. Katrina sat on the edge of the bed. "What am I supposed to do? What I sensed last night felt so powerful. If Cash went up against that, I don't know if he'd make it. But, he'd have to face it anyway, in order to protect me." Katrina began to cry. "I'm gonna be the death of him." She sobbed. However, she had to quickly stop her crying, as she heard footsteps heading towards the room. She wiped her eyes clear, just as Alvin came back around the corner. "Hey, Kate?" "Yeah?" "Ely and Theo sent me to get you and Cash. Uh, where is he?" "In the shower." 'Oh, well, it's about time he woke up. He's supposed to be in charge. He should be getting up early." "Well, he has been stressed out lately. And, stress does drain the body. So, it's no wonder he slept in." 'Yeah, I guess. Anyway, Ely and Theo sent me to get you guys. They got breakfast ready. Home made pancakes, and lots of them." "Sounds great. I'll be down in a minute." "Okay." Katrina buried the thoughts that had made her cry, and then headed to the bathroom. She knocked on the bathroom door. "Cash?" "Yeah?" Cash called back. "Alvin just told me that Ely and Theo have breakfast ready." "Great. What are we having?" "Pancakes." "Alright!" Katrina laughed at Cash's response a little. "He really likes pancakes, huh? I'll have to remember that." 'Well, I'm gonna head down now." "Okay. I'll be down as soon as I'm done." "Okay." 'Much later. "Cash!" Theodore yelled. "I see him, Theo!" Cash yelled. The chipmunks were playing Halo 3 over x box live in the living room, while the chipettes watched. Cash spun his character around and shot the approaching enemy in the head, killing him and ending the match. Cash could hear his fallen foe's player swearing like a mad man in his head set. "Man, he is royally pissed off. Thanks for the heads up, Theo." "No problem." "What's that make? Five games we've won?" Alvin asked. "Six actually." Simon said. "Really? Man, we are whooping ass." "Though I still wanna know why Cash was chosen to be the captain of our team." Alvin thought. Meanwhile, outside. "Looks lie it's gonna be another safe day. Good." Said the man watching the munks to himself. However, down the street. "Two more blocks." Said a shadowy figure to himself as he continued to drive on. As he got closer, the watcher could feel a growing dread develop inside him. "Oh, God no. Please, no! Please don't let it be…" The man looked up in time to see his fears come true. The man he and Iza feared was within spitting distance the Seville house. "Oh, Shit! Iza! Gotta call Iza!" The whipped out his phone as he bolted from his car. He quickly dialed Iza's number as he raced down the street. "Hello?" "Iza! Code red! Code red! He's here!" "I'm on my way!" "Hurry!" The man shoved his phone back in his pocket and raced to the house. Meanwhile, the evil man used something that appeared to be magic to unlock the front door of the Seville house open. "Dave? Is that you?" Cash called. The man walked around the corner. "Who the hell are you?!" Alvin yelled. The man ignored Alvin's question, and instead said "Hello, kiddies. You have something of mine. I'm here to take it back." 'Run, Cash!" Cash heard in his head. "Run now!" He heard Katrina gasp. "Cash! It's him! He's what I felt last night! I've got the same feeling right now!" "What?!" Cash looked at the man. "Everybody, run!" Cash yelled. The chipmunks ran out the back door and then around the corner. The man gave chase. He produced some sort of dark energy and shot it at the munks. They barely avoided it. "What the hell was that?!" Alvin yelled. 'Who cares?! Just keep running!" "We can't fight somebody like this here." Cash thought. "We need to get him some where big and open." Suddenly, Cash and the rest of the chipmunks heard the man cry out in pain. Another strange man had tackled their attacker to the ground. The chipmunks recognized the man. It was the greeter from Lady Iza's tent. "Keep moving!" He yelled as he bolted off the evil man. "What the hell are you doing here?!" Alvin asked. "No time to explain. I need to get you away from him now!" "Yeah, about him! Who is he, and why is he attacking us?!" Brittany yelled. "I said there's no time! Keep running!" the man had gotten up and kept up the chase. He chased the chipmunks and the greeter ran down the street and around the corner. They tried cutting through a construction site, where a new house was being built. The greeter looked behind him. "What? Where did he go?" The chipmunks began to slow down. "Did we lose him?" Eleanor asked. "I think so." "Okay. Answer time." Alvin said. "Who the hell was that? Why's he after us? Oh! And for good measure, who the hell are you and why are you here?" "Well, my name's Carter and….." Carter stopped. He sensed their attacker. "What? Above us?" He looked up. He saw the man falling out of the sky, straight at him and the munks. "What the hell?! He can fly?!" Alvin yelled. Carter shoved the chipmunks out of the way, just as the man got with within striking distance. He took the burnt of the blow, but was pushed back some what. As soon as he touched the ground., the evil man punched Carter in the stomach, then blasted him some sort of dark colored energy from his hands. This knocked Carter backwards and to the ground. The man walked over and picked Carter up off the ground, and held him in the air by the shirt. He released his right hand's grip on Carter's shirt and then charged another dark energy orb in that hand. He then said 'I've been waiting for this for a very long time, Carter." "Go to hell!" Carter wheezed. "No thanks. Already been as close to that place as I ever intend to get. Back when I was sent to the state pen. But, I suppose it wasn't all bad. I got these incredible powers in exchange for forfeiting ten years of my life. But, call me greedy, cause I wanna make that time up. So, I'm gonna need more power to do that. But, first, I need to get you out of my way." " We have to help him." Cash said. The other munks nodded and the eight of them moved to surround the man. The man noticed this and grinned. 'Oh, yes. First things first, right? I'd love to kill you, Carter. But first, I have to get my property back from these kids." "They're not your property!" "They?" Cash thought. "Shut up! Come here, kiddies. I need to talk to you." 'Run kids!" "Shut up!" The man moved to hit Carter with the energy orb. Cash rushed forth and grabbed the man's arm. 'Let go of him." Cash said. "Well, you're a strong one, aren't you? But, tell me, are you tough enough to block this?!" The man converted the energy orb into a pulse of energy. This knocked all of the chipmunks to ground. It also knocked Carter out of the man's grip, but his body wouldn't respond when he tried to get up. "Damn! I can't move! Kids, get up and run! You can't beat him!" "Not so fast, kiddies. I'm here to reclaim my property. Now just hold still." The man charged up another energy orb and broke it into eight pieces. Each piece shot out and struck a chipmunk in the chest. "Come on out of there now, you body snatchers." The chipmunks writhed in pain, but the man did not get the response he was looking for. "Fine. I guess Ill just have to kill them!" The energy intensified and the chipmunks cried out in agony. Just as they were about to black out, they each heard a voice from inside themselves shout "No!" Suddenly, eight ghostly entities emerged from the chipmunks bodies. The spirits forced the dark energy orbs away from the chipmunks and back at the man. The chipmunks dropped to the ground and watched the spectacle with half closed eyes. "No! Stop!" "Shove it!" One spirit said Cash recognized the voice. It was the same one he had been hearing for the past few days! "What's…what's going on?" Theodore groaned. "Stop it1 You don't know what your doing! That spell isn't designed to work in reverse! Stop!" The man yelled. But, the spirits kept pushing. They weren't going to stop, for they feared that if they did, the orbs would shoot right back at the chipmunks and kill them. But, this turned out to be a fateful decision. As the orbs got closer and closer to the man, the energy that made up the orbs began to crackle, hinting that the man was telling the truth when he said that the spell was not designed to work in reverse. The crackling eventually reached a crescendo the orbs became close enough touch. Suddenly, the spell exploded in a blinding flash of light. The energy of the explosion knocked the spirits back, into the chipmunks bodies. This in turn knocked the munks back. Their heads bounced off the ground and they passed out. The energy also knocked Carter out. When the man could see again, he looked around. As far as he knew, the chipmunks were dead, as was carter and the spirits had been destroyed. "Hmph! I come all this way for nothing. Oh well, at least I got rid of some of my enemies. Now, time to get back work." The man left quickly. A few minutes later, Iza arrived. When she didn't find Carter and the chipmunks at the Seville, she had used her powers to search for them. She followed what she sensed until she found them. "Oh, God." She said. "Please don't let me be too late." She rushed to, and quickly check on, the chipmunks. They were all unconscious, but thankfully still alive. She checked for the presence of the spirits. She sensed them inside the munks, though they seemed different than normal. But, she didn't have time to ponder further. She still had to check on Carter. "Carter! Carter!" She yelled, smacking his face. "Oh, please, God. Don't take him from me." "Never knew you cared so much." Carter groaned. "Carter! Your alive!" 'Yup, thank God for that." "What happened?" Carter explained what had happened to Iza. "Then, next thing I know, I sense him above me. When I looked up to check, sure enough, there he was, headed right for me, from out of the freaking' sky. Why didn't you tell me he could fly?" 'I don't think he can. I mean, his book is full of spells but, judging from what I got to see of it, I don't think it has any flying spells." 'Then how did he get up that high?" " I don't know. Um, magically charged super jump?" "I could buy that…'gasp' What happened to the munks?!" "They're over there." 'Are they?" 'No, I checked. They're still alive, but they're unconscious." "What about the spirits?" "They're inside the munks. I checked for that too. But, they felt, different. Like, warped in a way." 'Maybe it's a side effect of Vlad's spell." "What?" Carter told Iza the rest of the story. "Oh, God. With all that dark magic energy hitting them, no wonder they felt warped. I wonder what it did to them exactly.' "I don't know, but I think we should go." "Yeah, I guess so. Um, let's go back to their house. It should be the best place for them to recover, since we can't take them to a hospital. And I can use my powers to check the extent of the damage in private there." "Okay. Let's go." Later. 'It's no good. I can't get in. Their minds, the spell must've locked them up." Iza said. "Their bodies are fine, but we'll need something a lot stronger than us to wake them." "If they merge with the spirits, would that give them enough power to wake themselves up?" 'In theory. But, how can they do it when they're unconscious?" "I'll go in and help them." Can you get in?" 'It'll take all I got, but I think I can. I'm not considered the best at astral projection for nothing. Though, I probably won't be able to do much more than guide them after I get in." "Anything will help right now." "Alright then. Wish me luck, cause here I go."


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

"Ugh." Cash groaned. Cash pushed himself off of the ground he was laying on and shook his head, trying to shake the cobwebs out. 'Son of a bitch. Ow, my head. What the hell was all that about?" Cash got all the way up and took a quick look around. "Where the hell am I? And where is everyone?" "Good, your awake." Cash heard. He spun around and there stood Carter. "You!" Cash ran up and grabbed Carter by the shirt. He noticed, momentarily, that his grip didn't seem as strong as it normally did. "What the hell is going on? Who was that guy? No, wait, better question, who the hell are you? Yeah, that's a good place to start, since all of this seems to involve you in every single way. Tell me who you are, and where my family is!" "Well, let me go and I'll explain everything." Cash released Carter, and then said 'Talk." "Alright. First, my name's Carter. As I'm sure you remember, we met at Lady Iza's. I was the greeter." 'Yeah, I remember that." "Right, well, that's good. Show's that your memory is intact." 'Yeah, yeah, that's great. Now, get on with it." "Right. Well, you see, about three years ago, I met Iza. It was at a convention for real psychics." 'You're a real psychic?" 'Of course. How do you think I got here?" "Huh? What's being psychic got to do with being here? Speaking of which, where is here?" " I'll explain that in a moment. Now, where was I? Oh right. I met Iza at the convention. We really hit it off. Became very close friends. Anyways, we kept in touch during the time in between the conventions. We lived on opposite ends of the country, so we couldn't just meet up whenever we wanted. Not economically practical, you know?" "Not really something I need to know. Just skip to the part where my family and I get involved." 'Just wait. Jeez, your impatient." 'Put yourself in my shoes for a second. Wouldn't you be impatient too?" 'Fair enough. But, please let me tell it all. There's a lot behind all this, and even if it's not useful right now, you should know what led up to this moment. Now, like I said, we kept in touch. I told Iza to let me know if she ever needed my help. About a year and a half goes by, and I get a email from Iza. In it, she told me how her uncle Vlad, who was sent to jail for multiple robberies a little over ten years ago, broke out of prison. How, she didn't know right then, but she said wanted to find him. She hoped she could talk to him, and at least keep him from returning to his old ways. She was sure she could do it, since they'd been really tight when she was little. Boy, was she wrong, and Lord do I wish that I'd done more to help her than just wish her luck. See, she used her mind reading powers to track him down." " Mind reading?" 'Yeah, you know, the psychic power that let's your read people's minds?" "I know what is, I just wasn't expecting that to be her power when you told me you met at a psychics convention. Matter of fact, that's the second person I've ever met with that power." 'The second?" 'Yeah, the other one's Kate." "Huh, I didn't sense any power like that in her." 'She doesn't use it very much, so it's probably not very strong as a result. ' sigh' God, I wonder where she is." "Don't worry, she's alright, for the most part." 'What do you mean? If you know where she is, tell me!" "Well, that's kind of hard to explain unless you hear the rest of the story." "Then hurry up and spit it out already!" "Okay, okay. Iza used her powers to track down her uncle. But, he was far from the good old Uncle Vlad she knew and loved. He'd changed, more so than what a life of crime and prison will normally do. Somehow, while in the state pen, Vlad had gotten his hands a book of spells. And not some puny, pathetic, 'how pull a quarter out of someone's ear' kind of magic book either. He got the real deal. And , without much else to do, he started reading, and reading. Eventually, he found a spell that helped him break out. Once out, he first found a hiding place, and then kept reading. He started memorizing all the spells in there, and all their uses. One in particular he found, was a way of gaining more power. And, being a greedy man, he focused on that one in particular. Hoping to gain a ton of power, so he could take anything his heart desired in this world, and no one could stop him. Least, that's my guess. Anyways, like I said, he focused on that spell. The spell required the caster to capture individuals and then the spell would drain the energy out of them." "Drain the energy.. You mean suck the life out of them?" "Not entirely. At least, I don't think so. But, that doesn't matter. Because his chosen victims, his 'prey' if you will, aren't human. At least, not anymore." "What?" 'Vlad's victims, are spirits. You know, ghosts." "Ghosts.. Why ghosts?" "When Iza later told me about all this, I asked that too. She said that when she found him, he was right in the middle of draining the energy out of some poor soul. And, remembering their past closeness, she said that he offered her some of the power. She didn't understand, so he explained all this to her, which she later explained to me, and now me to you. He said that he choose ghosts for two reasons. Reason one, he said, was because they're pretty much just as abundant as people. And, not to give credit to a mad man, but he was right. I mean, people die every day, and not all of them pass on. So, there would be an ample supply. But, the other reason, he said, was far more important. He said he chose ghosts, because they won't be missed. If you kidnap a person, people are gonna find out, and come looking for them, and that puts you in trouble. But, if you capture a ghost, people won't notice. And, even if they did, they'd just think that the spirit finally passed on, not that somebody with magic powers had taken him or her. In other words, they're a no risk target. No muss, no fuss. Iza, being the kind, good natured soul she is, was naturally appalled by this. She refused the power and then told her uncle that he needed help, and that she'd get him that help. That was probably the worst thing she's ever said. Her uncle couldn't risk her going and telling anyone about him, so he decided to shut her up. But, since they were so close back in the day, he couldn't bring himself to kill her. So, instead, he broke her heart and made it impossible for her to talk. He used a spell on her that causes her to loose control over herself, and act completely insane, once a month. And the whole thing must be really draining, cause she's out for three days after each fit. To top it off, the times vary, so we can only do our best to guess at when it'll happen next. The next one, we think, is in two days. Oh, and don't go crackin' any jokes about girls and their periods. This is a hell of a lot more serious." " I'm not that kind of guy, Carter. All I have to say is ''why didn't she go to the police in when she was normal?'" "Ah, that's the other half of the spell. The reason why she asked me to help. .If she tries to tell a police officer or something like that, the spell will kick in automatically, and she'll start acting crazy right there in front of him or her. And, who'd believe a person like that? But, I guess she's fortunate that she could talk to regular folks about this. He could've taken away her ability to ask for my help. Guess he didn't think she had that kind of friend." "Yeah, about your involvement in this. I wanna know, why didn't you go to the police in her place?" "Believe me, after I found out, I tried. But, since I couldn't prove any of this, they wrote me off as a prankster and told me if I pulled this stunt again, I'd be arrested." "Yikes. Talk about being up a creek." 'Yeah. By the way you seem to be handling this pretty well. None of this seems odd to you?" " No, cause I've dealt with stuff like this before." 'Huh?" "Let' just say that, when you're a talking chipmunk, weird stuff just seeks you out. Now finish your story." "Right, well, since help from the cops was out of the question, and since we were sure nobody else would believe us if we told them, Iza decided to stop him herself, and I agreed to help her, since she's my best friend. We used Iza's power to track him again. After we got a lock on him, we came up with a plan. We knew neither of us could go toe-to-toe with him, so we opted to use one of the oldest tricks in the book. Use the enemies power against them. We knew, if we could get that book of his, we could learn our own spells, which we could use to stop him. Unfortunately, that meant that we had to get close to him and try to steal his book out from under him. With a grand stroke of luck, we managed to get our hands on the book, but, we didn't get the time to read it. See, we had snuck into the little hidey hole of a hotel room that we had tracked him to, while he went out for breakfast. But, we took so long to find where he hid the damn book that we only had time for us to take a quick glance through it, me to rip out two pages and then for us to beat it when we sensed him getting close. I wish we hadn't panicked and thought to take the whole book, but that didn't happen. Fortunately though, luck proved that it was still on our side. See, I had managed to rip out a page about spirits that Vlad didn't seem to have read yet. I figured he hadn't read it, because unlike the other pages we had looked at, which had highlighted sections and what not, this page was almost pristine. It told of how, when a spirit and a person merge, they become more powerful than the sum of their parts." 'Oh, like possession right?" 'Actually, this runs deeper than mere possession. You see, the page said that, if a spirit comes in contact with a living person of a similar personality, then the two can combine power. The spirit can draw strength from the person, by absorbing some of their energy, in order to defeat powerful foes, and in return, the person can use the spirit like a weapon for the same purpose. Think of it like a person holding a gun. The gun is intended to do harm to the person's enemies, and all it needs in return is the ammunition supplied by person. So, basically, the spirit will become the person's 'gun', in exchange for 'ammo', which in this case takes the form of the person's own energy." "Okay, and the other page?" " That's where we got even luckier. That other page, believe it or not, was a map that told where Vlad kept the spirits he captured. I'm guessing he kept them in a separate location because he knew that they would cause a lot of noise, crying out for help. And, all that noise, would draw peoples' attention, which he couldn't have as a prison escapee. So, he kept them locked up in a cave, deep in the forest near his hotel. There, he could perform the spell in peace. Anyways, we decided to follow the map and we eventually found the cave. Unfortunately, we didn't have a spell that could free them all. But, eight of them had proven to be tough enough to force their way through the barrier. It was when we met them that Iza hatched the idea to use that information we had gotten on spirits from that other page. She told them her idea, and they agreed to help. Unfortunately, that also meant that we now had to find to people with the just the right personalities. There was no spell to forcibly bind them. It was just a natural, basically friends with the spirit and the spirit would help out the person because he or she was a friend. And, the best of friends, always formed by people who share similar ideas and lifestyles. So, we needed to find people who could bond with these spirits. People with personalities similar to theirs. We wondered how to do this for a while, until Iza remembered a TV special she'd seen on fortune tellers. She suggested that we set up a fortune tellers thing. Human curiosity, she said, would draw in all kinds of people. And, using her mind reading power and my limited sensing abilities, we could find the right ones. The 'chosen ones', as came to refer to them. And, that's where you and your family come in. We sensed it in you. You guys were ideal. So, Iza, unbeknownst to me, had all the spirits possess those character cards you saw. When you touched them, they'd jump into you and begin to try to bond with you. All that sign stuff was just to distract you long enough to give the spirits time to slip inside your bodies unnoticed." "So, in other words, you drafted us into your fight." 'Well…yeah." Cash grabbed Carter by the shirt again. "You son of… I've been thinking that I've been going crazy, cause I kept hearing this voice in my head, telling me to awaken, and really, it was ghost you put in me. You know I oughta beat the hell out of you right?!" "Yeah, but, it was the only way. We had to jump at the opportunity. We didn't think you'd listen if just came up and asked you for your help. Not with a crazy story like ours to listen to." 'If you'd done it the right way, we would've at least listened." "I'm sorry, okay. It wasn't fair for us to drag you and the others into this, but we didn't have a choice. Vlad has to be stopped. If he's not stopped, well, you saw what he nearly did you guys a little while ago with his current power level. Who knows what he could once he's got even more power? Look, I know your mad, and you have every right to be. You have every right to hate me and Iza. But, I want you to know, if there was another way, we would've done it. But, this was all we had. We're desperate. I'm desperate to help my friend. She's…she's really special to me. I can't stand to see her suffer when she thinks about what awful things her beloved uncle is doing right now. And, Iza's desperate to save whatever's left of the uncle she loves inside Vlad. Please, I don't care if you hate us for the rest of your life, just please find it in your heart to help us end this." Cash thought for a moment then sighed and said 'Maybe I'm too forgiving for my own good, but, I don't hate you." 'You don't?" "No, cause I understand doing extreme things when your desperate. And, I learned from my first human dad, Agito Ikebana, that keeping a grudge doesn't do you any good in life. He said, if you can, settle it. If not, find a way to let it go. So, we're going to settle this right now. Here's the deal, I'll help you, since I just can't find it in me to not help people when they're as desperate as you are, but, your gonna help me all the way. You aren't gonna get to it back while my family I do all the work." 'Done. That's why I came in here anyway." 'Yeah, about here, where are we? I mean, it feels familiar, but I don't recognize it.' "Yeah, I doubt you would. Most people don't get to see what their mind looks like on the mental plane.' "Say what?" "Cash, this little room, area, heck, guess you could call it a little world, is what your mind looks like on the mental plane. In other words, Cash, your inside your own mind.' "are you serious?!" 'Take a closer look." Cash looked around. It was now, now that he was looking closer at this place, that he saw that the 'walls' were covered with pictures of some of his favorite memories. The day Agito gave him his sword, his first kiss with Katrina, and many others. "Whoa…Freaking sweet. So, this is what the inside of my mind looks like. A little black room, with the walls covered in pictures of my favorite moments through out my life. Feels appropriate. But, uh, how are you here if this is my mind?' "Astral projection. I'm transmitting part of my mind into your head, and this me is a, uh, a mental hologram, here to help you."' Ah, okay." Cash looked over Carter's shoulder. He saw seven, different colored doors. "What are those doors?" "About time you noticed those. I saw them and sensed what they were when I first got here." "Yeah, well, I've been out for a while, so tell me what they are smart guy." " Those are doors that lead into the minds of family." " Seriously? How is that possible?" 'Well, I' not sure, but, I have a theory." "Let's hear it." 'Well, Vlad tried to use a very powerful dark spell on you guys. The spirits we slipped inside you tried to protect you, by pushing the spell back towards Vlad. But, apparently, Vlad was telling the truth when he said that that spell isn't designed to go in reverse. When it was pushed to far, in the opposite way it was meant to go, the spell just exploded, driving the spirits back into you and knocking you out in the process. I'm guessing this connection was born as a side effect." 'That's it? A side effect?' "It's magic, Cash. Anything can happen with magic." " Okay, okay. So, if those doors lead to my families minds, then the color of the doors till whose behind each one, right?' 'I guess so. I'm a psychic, not a magician. But I guess that the memory of the persons favorite color decides the color of the door to their inside of their mind. And I'm guessing that since your astral projection, the form your in right now, is here in inside your mind, as it should be, then they're projections are in there." "Man, this is confusing." "I know but, like I said, this is all magic's fault. That's why I'm glad I got psychic powers, instead of magic ones. Psychic powers are strange, but at least you know what they're capable of. With magic, especially magic gone haywire like this, who knows what could happen." That statement made Cash ask this question "Hey, Carter?' 'Yeah?" "If anything could be happening right now, cause this of magic gone crazy, could that mean that they're all in trouble, even though they're in their own minds?" "Like I said, Cash. Anything's possible right now." " 'Sigh' why do we always have to be separated? Why couldn't we have been placed together in here?" "If I had the answer, I'd tell you, Cash." "Well, no point in standing here wondering why didn't just happen. Not when we can make it happen. Let's go." 'Good plan, but, I think you oughta try to merge with the spirit inside you. If I could find him. Where is he?" "We don't have time for this Carter. I'll talk deal with him later." "But.." "I said there's no time. My family could be in danger! And if that's the case, then I have to save them!" "I have to save them." Came a mocking voice from behind them. The voice sounded similar to Cash's. Cash and Carter turned to see another Cash standing there, with a twisted smile on his face. "What the hell?"


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Cash and Carter looked at the other Cash. "What the? Another Cash?" Carter said. He looked over to Cash, only to find him staring back at him, with a questioning look on his face. "Hey, don't look at me. You've got as much clue about who or what he is as I do." Cash looked back at the other him. "You can't be dark Cash. You don't have the fangs or the claws. So, just who the hell are you?" "Me? Well, let's think about that. I'm not your inner little monster. That wild animal side of you. No, he's locked up in the same place you always keep him. So, if I'm not him, then I must be you. Or at least, another part of you." "Your not me. I know that much." "Oh, but what you know is wrong, Cash. I am you. I'm that part of you that you don't want to own up to. The part you hide from all the others." "Quit spouting bullshit, and tell me who you are!" "I told you. I'm you." 'But that's not possible. There's only two sides to me. This me, the normal me, and my darker, wild side. It's just the two of us. There is no third." "Well, obviously, there is now. And do you know why?" "No, and I don't care. I don't have time for this. I need to get to my family." 'So you can be the big hero again?" "Huh?" 'Admit it. That's what your really after. Sure, you can say that you want to save them, because you love them, because they're your family. But, face it. Deep down, you and I both know that you have save them, because this is your fault." 'My fault?!" "Yeah, cause lately, you've been really bored right? You've been dying to get back into the hero biz. Been aching to start kicking bad guy butt again. You know, get back into action and have yourself a good old fashioned adventure. In other words, you've been dying for some excitement. Cause, apparently, being a talking chipmunk and rock star, and a trained samurai jus isn't enough for you. No, you want more. So much so, that you actually wished for a villain to show up, so you could kick his ass and be the big hero again." 'I never said that." 'No, but you thought it, and you felt it. That was enough. Enough to send out a vibe that would attract evil to you. And, when that evil came, it put your family in danger. Imagine, you say you have to rescue them, but you're the one who put them in trouble in the first place. All because of your hunger for excitement. It's ironic really. You want to be the hero, yet you know that you're the villain here." "Shut up!" "Oh, your getting mad. I guess I'm hitting some nerves, aren't I? Now, why is that? If I'm just spouting bullshit, then why are you getting so mad? Is it because you know, though you won't dare say it, that what I say is the truth?" " I said shut up! Shut up, damn t!" Cash had finally had it. He attacked the other Cash. The other Cash merely blocked the attack. "So, it's come to this, huh? You can't deny what I say, so your just going to silence me, eh? Well, so you know, Cash. You can't beat me. I know all your moves. Armed and hand to hand. And I know all that because of the same reason that I know your deeply buried secret. I know, because I am you!" "Shut it!" Cash tried a reverse spinning heel kick, but the other Cash blocked it with one of his own. "Don't you see, Cash? We can keep up this perfectly symmetrical fighting until you drop. It won't do you any good. There is only one way to beat me, but it means facing the darkness within." "The darkness within?" "The darkness within you!" Shadow Cash swiped at Cash, so Cash jumped away to dodge it. "The only way to beat me, is to defeat your own inner darkness." 'I've already conquered that. I control my fury. I command dark Cash. Which means I control my inner darkness." "There's more darkness in you than just the part that your wild side spawns from. He comes from the parts of you that are still based in the animal kingdom. And that is why he is awakened by your anger, because he is born from the primal fury that all animals posses. I, meanwhile, come from a completely new part of your inner darkness. The darkness created by your selfish desires. You see, Cash. I exist, because you hungered for action, no matter what. But, when that desire crossed your mind, you knew it was wrong. But, instead of owning up to it, you decided to bury it. Keep it a secret and hope it would pass. But, what you didn't know, is that, once you did that, that desire began to grow, because it's one of those feelings that you can't just bury and forget. It stays and grows, until you satisfy your desire. You hid it for so long, that it changed into a whole new portion of your inner darkness. And it is that darkness, born from your original desire, that I come from. Oh yes. We may both be born from your inner darkness, your wild side and myself, but that does not make us the same. Just because you have your control over him, it doesn't mean you control all of the darkness within you. It doesn't mean that you control me. And you can not use your dominance as the main personality to best me. I will only vanish when the darkness from which I came is destroyed." Carter sat in silence and listened to all this. "Damn. Kids these days. They got a hell of a lot more rattling around in their heads than my generation did. Damn, ten years ago, my biggest issue was finding a date for the spring dance. Cash, though, he's got all of that locked up in him. But, the question is, how did this other Cash come to be? I mean, he's pretty much flat out said that that one particular part of Cash's inner darkness is what gives him strength. So long as it exists, he stays strong. But, while it gives him strength, it couldn't make him appear. No, this stinks of something more powerful than one's inner demons. Could it be that the dark power of Vlad's spell some how gave rise to this other Cash? Well, no matter what created him, there's only one way to get rid of him. I can sense it. He's not lying about how to get rid of him. I'd better tell Cash." 'Cash!" 'What?" 'Listen to me. He's not lying about you can get rid of him. I know you don't want to face that darkness inside you and admit the truth, but you have to. He'll hold us up if we try to go on without dealing with him, I can just tell. You have to beat him. So.. You know what you got to do. And just so you know, I'm not judging you. It's natural to like being a hero. It's okay to like that feeling and it's okay to want to keep feeling it." 'But it's not okay to put your family in danger." This statement piqued Carter and the other Cash's interest. Cash thought about his sword for a moment and it's mental image appeared in his hand. "I once swore an oath on this sword. And I swore it to the man that I called my father for thirteen years. I promised him that I would use my training, use my power, to defeat evil in any form it may take and to protect what matters most to me. And I will never break that promise. I have to go rescue my family. But, first, I have to clear my conscience. I mean, how can a warrior battle evil, when he hasn't contended with his own personal evils yet? Simple answer. He can't. And that's why, I'm gonna end this, tight now. So, here goes. It's true. I did feel that desire, and it's true that I buried it, rather than owning up to it. I choose to hide it, when I had a lot of people who would listen , and try to understand. I should've gotten off my chest much sooner, but I chose not to. I guess I was afraid of what my family might think of me. But, I realize now that, sure Alvin may kidded me about it, but he would've understood. And everyone else would have understood and helped me cope with it too. That's just the kind of people they are. But I didn't take advantage of that, and look where it got me. I guess I was afraid that, if I said it out loud, it would bring trouble. I thought, if I kept it inside, it would keep my family safe. But, like you said, other me, that didn't work out. I was trying to head the old adage 'be careful what you what wish for'. I thought that, if I didn't speak my wish, it wouldn't happen. But, like you said, other me, I was wrong. But, now, I will set things right. Not to be a hero, but to be doing the right thing. That's all I should ever strive to do, and I promise right now, that that is all I will try to do from here on out. And, I'll start making good on that promise right no, by taking care of you, other me. I guess I can't deny it. You know too much about me to not be some other part of me. So, I accept that you exist inside me. And the darkness that you came from, I accept that too. But, I can't go on with you and it still here. And that's why I've decided to do my best to learn to be patient. Good things come to those who wait, right? So, if I need excitement, I just have to be patient and something will come along that will satisfy that need. From here on out, I promise to be patient and wait for those good and exciting things to come along. And that should suffice as a way of dealing with that darkness that you came from." Suddenly, the other Cash smiled. As if he seemed happy to hear this resolution, even though it meant that he'd be wiped out. Strange lines began to appear all over the other Cash's body. They turned into cracks and strange lights began to seep out from them. "What's going on?" Cash said. The cracks grew and, eventually, the other Cash exploded in a burst of light. Cash and Carter averted their eyes. When they turned back, they saw a man standing in the other Cash's place. "Woo! Man, bout time." He said. "Alex!" Carter cried. "Hey, Carter." "You guys know each other?" Cash asked. "Cash, meet Alexander. He's the spirit we slipped into you." 'I see, So your the one that was making me think I was going crazy." "Yeah, I'm sorry about that. But, I knew what was at stake, so I tried to get you to hurry up and finish the bonding process.' 'Well, if you could leave my body at any time, why didn't you try to talking to me in person, instead of from inside?" "I, uh, I guess I just didn't think of it." 'Oh, boy." Cash said. "Look, Cash. I'm sorry. But, I made it up to you." 'Yeah? How?" 'I helped you get rid of your darkness." 'What?" 'That other you? That was me." "What? How'd you turn into another Cash, Alex?" Carter asked. "Well, see, when Vlad's spell blew up, I was covered in dark energy. When I got knocked back into Cash, that dark energy drew in the darkness in Cash's heart. It swarmed me, and ended up transforming me into that other Cash. But, I found that I still had some control, so I tried to help you deal with what I'd become. As for how I knew that what you did would do the trick, well, I just kinda felt it." "I see. Well, at least your back to normal. And speaking of feelings, I feel pretty good. Felt good to get that off my chest." 'Well, all's well that ends well then, right?' 'Yeah. But, this isn't quite over, is it? ""Nope. We still gotta rescue everyone else and deal with Vlad." "And your coming with me, right?" "Course. That's what I'm here for. Just do what you can, Cash, and leave the rest to me. I got your back." 'Great. Welcome to the team." Cash said, extending his hand. Alexander stuck out his hand and, when they're hands touched, a strange glow was emitted from their hands. "What was that?" "That was your 'awakening'. You and I became friends, and so the bond was made. So, now you've got the power." "Well, I'm glad to have that power. I know I'm gonna need it." "Well, now you have it, and we'll be with you all the way too, Cash." Carter said. Alexander nodded. "Thanks, guys. Uh, hey, you guys think that the others are going through what I just went through?" 'Probably." Alexander said. "Well then, what are standing around for? Let's go help them awaken." Cash said, headed for the white door. Katrina's door.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

**Cash, Carter and Alex approached the white door. "The white door. No doubt who's behind this one." Cash said. "Katrina, right?" Carter asked. "Yup. White's her favorite color, she said, because it looks so good on her. And, I can't deny, it does. Very good…" Cash shook his head, trying to stop himself from letting his mind wander. "Anyways, no time to think about that. Kate's in there, and she's probably going through what I just went through. Which means I have to go in and help her.." 'You think she's already faced her other self, Cash?" Alex asked. " I mean, all of us spirits got hit with that dark energy, so I'd imagine that what happened to me probably happened to them. They all got turned into versions of their munk." 'Let's call them shadows." Cash said. 'Shadows?" "Yeah, shadows." "Okay, but why?" "Well, cause this whole thing kind of reminds me of this video game Alvin and I have been playing lately. It's called persona. In it, people travel into this other world, because it's connected to a mystery they're trying to solve. But, the world has a special power. It brings out the worst in people and gives it physical form, which is referred to as their shadow, or other self, and they have to face it and own up to what it's saying. Once they do that, it will transform into a protective, spirit like force known as a persona. It's still their other self, but it's good this time. But, like I said, before they become personas, they're called shadows. And, they do what you did when you were that other me. The shadow Cash. They start telling people's secrets. Don't know why exactly, but they do. And, since this situation is kinda like the story in persona, I say we call the other munks the shadow munks. 'chuckle' And maybe I should call you my persona, since I've beaten my shadow self and it became you, a protective force." "Well, I guess you could do that. I don't really care." "Hmm, hey, I just thought of a better reason to call you my persona." 'What is it?" "Well, think about this. If we're in battle, like against Vlad, and I call out your name to signal you to attack, Vlad may catch on that your about to attack him, since he might remember your name, and be able to dodge or block the attack. But, if I just suddenly yell out 'persona!', like they do in the game, then he wouldn't know what I'm doing and give you the chance to catch him off guard." 'Hey, not a bad idea. Let's do it." 'Okay then. Just remember, whenever I yell out the word persona, you attack." 'Okay. Just be sure to be ready to give me some of your energy to increase my attack strength." 'Will do. Alright, then. We've talked enough. Let's go in." Cash said, placing his hand on the door, ready to push it open. "Oh, and by the way. To answer your earlier question, I don't know. I don't know if she has faced her other self or not, but I do doubt it unfortunately. After all, she didn't have the luxury of having Carter standing there waiting for her to wake up. He was the one that told me that the other me was telling the truth, cause he could sense that he wasn't lying. But, Kate doesn't have Carter to tell her that, if her other self is doing what you did as the other me, that she's telling the truth. But, we're getting ahead of ourselves here. There's only one way to find out what's going on in there. So, let's go in and get her." "Okay. Let's go." Cash pushed open the door and headed on in. Alex and Carter followed closely behind. They took in the sight of the area. Just like how Cash's little mental 'world' had been all black because of the that black was his favorite color, Katrina's was all white. But, while the floor and walls of Cash's 'world' had the look of onyx, Katrina's looked like pure white marble. There were also white roses hanging in small planters which were attached to the walls. Cash recalled that Katrina loved roses, which would explain those flowers being there. Cash looked around everywhere. "Whoa." He said. "I knew Kate had a beautiful personality, but I had no idea what that would translate to here." 'It's like being in a huge work of art." Carter said. "Yeah, but, where's Kate?" Cash asked. "I don't know. Her world seems to be bigger than yours." 'Well, I guess that's because I'm just a simple kind of guy. Kate's tastes are a little more advanced than mine. Not a whole lot, but enough to make a difference here apparently." "And that's the problem. If she was simpler, we'd probably find her just sitting right here, unknowingly waiting to be found. But, since she's a little more complicated than that, it's harder to find her." "Yeah. Well, Guess we'd better go further in and look." 'Yeah. Let's go." "Hey, guys, look over there." Alex said, pointing off to the side. The group looked to where Alex was pointing. "They look like stairs." Carter said. "Let's take'em and see where they go." Cash said. "Yeah. If she's not here on the 'top floor', but she's down below." Carter said. "Well, let's go." The three men began to walk down the stairs. Eventually, the stair way began to get cramped and images of bees began to appear. "What's going on?" carter asked. "What's with this sudden narrowing and all these bee pictures?" "These are good signs. We must be getting close." Cash said. "What do you mean?" "Well, Kate's apiphobic and claustrophobic. Or, in other words, she's really afraid of bees and tight spaces." "So this is reprehensive of that?' "Yeah." "Okay, bit why did you say it's a good sign?" "Well, think of it this way. My world was kinda like the vault of a bank. It's where I kept my most precious memories and most secretive thoughts. Just like how a bank vault holds money and sometimes people's valuables. Kate's world is kinda like a building. A corporation building to be precise. Now, think about a corporation with something to hide. If they can't keep it in external place, and they have to keep it in their building, where do you think they put it?" 'In the basement!" 'Or as close to it as possible. And the more top secret the thing is, the further down it's kept. Katrina tries to keep her fears buried down deep, but I'd imagine that whatever probably changed her spirit into her shadow is probably buried as deep as she could get it. Probably underneath her phobias. So that means that we have to go through her phobias to get to her secret, which will lead us to her." " "Oh, I get it. Like how you'd have to go down past whatever else the corporation was keeping a secret, in order to find the one top secret thing your actually looking for." "Exactly, and since it's getting pretty tight in here, and more bee pictures are showing up, I'd say we're getting pretty close. Because, I assume, the biggest concentration of her phobias would be kept as far down a possible. And her deepest secret should be buried just beyond that." 'Makes sense to me. Let's hurry. I can barely move arms." "Right. Hey, look." Cash said, suddenly stopping. Carter looked. "A door." Carter said, looking at what Cash saw. "The stairs stop here, so Kate must be in there. Let's go." Cash said. "Right. But, have that sword of yours ready, Cash. We don't know what's going to happen in there. Her shadow could turn violent. So, be ready to defend yourself if you have to." "Okay. Now, let's go." Cash pushed open the door. He found himself in a small room, covered in images of bees. And, right in the middle stood two Katrinas. "Kate!" He yelled. The real Katrina looked over and said 'Cash?" Cash walked further into the room. Katrina ran to him, while Shadow Katrina watched. "Cash, I'm so happy to see you. I'm so glad you're here." "Yeah, I'm glad to see you too, babe. But, first, we have to deal with her." Cash said, pointing to the other Katrina. "Yeah, her. I don't who she is. She looks like me and she says is me. But, I'm me. So she can't be me." "Oh, but I am, Katrina. I am you. Or at least, I'm a part of you. I'm that part of you that you don't want to talk about. So you try to keep me buried. I'm your worst fear. Your worst nightmare. The thing that once made you wake up in the middle of the night, screaming and crying." "You shut up! You see, Cash? That's what I've been dealing with. I've been trying to get her to tell me what's going on, but all she does is spout stuff like that. And, when she does come close to answering my questions, she finds a way to spin it right back to what she wants to talk about. It's maddening. That's what it is." 'Is it maddening because it's frustrating, or because you know I'm speaking the truth?" The other Katrina asked. "Or, maybe it's both. Your frustrated because I won't answer your questions, and your upset because I'm talking about a truth you keep hidden." "How many times do I have to tell you to shut up about that crap!?" "You see, Cash? She loses her temper whenever I bring this up. She's determined to keep this a secret." Cash looked the shadow of Katrina in the eyes. "Tell me what she's keeping hidden." He said. "Cash!" Katrina yelled. "Kate, you don't get it. It might not seem like it, but she's trying to help you." 'Help me?" "Yeah, you see, Carter over there, you remember him, and Iza secretly slipped some ghosts into us when we went to Iza's fortune tellers set up. They were drafting us to battle Iza's uncle Vlad, that crazy, magic wielding guy who attacked us earlier. See, he's been capturing spirits and using a spell to feed off their energy, in order to make himself more powerful. They've been trying to stop him ever since they found out. But, that's a long, complicated story, that I don't have time to finish. If you want the rest of it, ask Carter about it later. He's the one who told me. But, for right now, just know that this other Katrina is the result of the spirit that Carter and Iza slipped inside you being exposed to the evil power of Vlad's spell." 'Huh?" "Remember? Vlad attacked, and tried to use that one spell on us that would kill us. The spirits left our bodies temporarily in order to protect us. But, things didn't work out like they planned. Vlad's spell ended up exploding, when it did, it covered the spirits in dark magic energy, before sending them flying back into our bodies, with enough force to knock us out and put us in the situation we're in now." "The situation we're in now?" 'Yeah. When Vlad's spell blew up, the magic power that made it up when haywire, causing a bunch of different side effects. For one, like I said, it knocked us out.. But, not only that, it locked us up inside our own minds. Stranded us on the mental plane. This place we're in, Kate, is your mind." 'My mind?" 'Yeah, or at least what it looks like on the mental plane. Like, if some psychic person entered your mind from the mental plane, this is how it would look to them. And, don't worry, there's more to it than just this little room. It's actually really pretty further on up. This is just the dank, little 'basement' of it. This is where you keep all your worst fears. That explains why it's so small and why there all these pictures of bees. This is where you keep your claustrophobia and apiphobia. It's also where you keep the secret that's giving the other Katrina her form and power. And that's the thing. She's not supposed to look like this. Like you. She's really the spirit Carter and Iza slipped inside you. She has her own true form. But, she looks like this because, when she was knocked back into you after Vlad's spell exploded, she was still covered with dark energy. And that dark energy drew in the darkness in your heart created by keeping this secret. And, the only way to return her to normal, is to hear her out, and then you have to own up to what she's says and try to overcome it. If you can do that, the darkness will fade away and she'll return to normal and become very valuable friend." 'But…" "Look, I know you'd rather keep it a secret, but we don't have that luxury right now. But don't worry, You've got me here to support you. I know it'll be hard but, I believe in you." "Well, at least some one does." The shadow Katrina said. "Did you know that Katrina barely believes in herself, Cash? She's almost completely dependent on others when it comes to self defense. She's got her special powers, but she doesn't freaking use them! She's letting all of Macy's hard work go to waste. After all those hours Macy spent coaxing out her powers , and then teaching her how to use them, Katrina still relies on others for her own protection. And that fact is where her fear comes from. Would you like to know what that fear is?" "It's the only way to end this, so let's hear it." Cash said. Katrina knew Cash would never lie to her. If he said that this was the only way, she believed him. So, though it hurt her to let the truth be known, she let her other self speak. "Very well. First off, let me tell you something, Cash. Katrina has found the courage to fight back only twice in her entire life. Once when Macy was still alive. The daughter of one of Macy's old rivals came looking for revenge on Macy because of what had happened to her mother years ago when Macy and said mother clashed in a psychic battle. Both survived the encounter, but Macy was left weakened, and the mother's mind was shattered. She's living out the rest of her days in the psyche ward. But, nothing can be done about that. So, we'll focus on what happened to Macy after that. Flash forward a few years after that battle, and we find Macy teaching a young Katrina how to use the powers she's acquired. Then one day, the daughter I mentioned comes looking for revenge for her mother never being able to leave the psyche ward. Macy tries valiantly to defend her precious daughter, but she's not strong to defeat her enemy. When it looks like it's allover for Macy, Katrina finally finds a burst of courage, and charges in to defend her mother. Though her powers weren't very strong, and her attack served as little more than a distraction, Katrina was still able to protect Macy long enough to give her time to build up enough strength for one good, telekinesis toss, which she used to fling their attacker into a nearby active river, which promptly washed her away. And thankfully, for one reason or another, they never heard from her again. Now that's a nice, I know. It has a relatively happy ending. But, do you know what happened afterwards? No, I suppose you don't. After all, you weren't there. So, I'll tell you. The worn out Macy collapsed. And it took several for her to recover. Katrina, like a good doting daughter, never left Macy's side during that time. But, you know what happened after Macy recovered? Katrina went right back to her old ways of relying on Macy to fight her battles. Whenever she had a problem, she ran to Macy. You'd think that that battle would have made Katrina stronger. Helped her learn how to protect herself. But, no, it didn't. Because Katrina's a creature of habit. She'll break her habits when absolutely necessary, but once the necessity is gone, she's right back to the same old, same old. She just doesn't change, even when everything around her says she should. Flash forward a few more years, and now she has you in her life. And, how many times have you protected her? What's it been, like, six or so times now? And she's only found the courage to protect you, just like with Macy, once. True that was life or death situation, but so were all the times you protected her. Hmm, six compared to one. Doesn't quite add up, does it? And there in lie the problem. She's the reason you have to constantly through yourself in harm's way. You've nearly been killed a time or two because of her. She's almost as bad as the enemies you've fought. Hmm. I wonder something, Cash. You shared your bed with her last night, didn't you? Tell me, how did it feel to sleep beside your worst enemy?" 'What? I that what Katrina's really feeling?" Carter asked. "Oh, yes sir. That's exactly what she's. She thinks that, though she's his lover, she's pretty much his worst enemy too, cause of all the danger her weakness puts him in. you see now? The true nature of Katrina's biggest fear is that she knows that her and weakness are going to be the death of Cash." "'Grrr' Enough!" Katrina yelled. "What? Have you stood all you can stand and can't stand anymore?" The shadow Katrina asked. "That's right. I've had it. No more." 'You know how to make this end, Katrina. You know how you can truly save Cash from his fate." "That's exactly what I'm talking about." "Huh?" 'It took having all of this happen to me for me to finally get pushed far enough to where I have to make a stand and make this cycle of dependency end. Right now, I say no more! No more being scared, no more being weak! That ends now! I will not be the death of Cash. I won't allow it! I love him, and I intend to grow up, marry him, have kids with him, grow old with him and die with him, and then buried side by side. And in order for that to happen, Cash can't die young. I can't and won't let him. So from now on, I'll work to become stronger. I'll become a whole new Katrina if I have to. I'll do whatever takes. I'll try as hard as I can to hone my mind, my body, and my soul so that I can become the kind of lover Cash's deserves. That's my goal. To prove to everyone that I'm worthy of Cash's love and one day become his equal in terms of strength. And along the way, I'll become the kind of sister, and daughter, and daughter-in-law, and everything else that those I love deserve. I promise I will. And I won't ever go back that promise! Never! I swear it!" "Whoa." Was all Cash could say. He felt immensely proud of Katrina right now. He looked over to the other Katrina. He noticed that she was smiling, just like the other Cash had. Then, the same lines that appeared on shadow Cash, appeared on shadow Katrina. The same process took place, and Cash called for everyone to cover their eyes, which they did. The shadow Katrina exploded in a flash of light. When they looked back, a beautiful spirit girl was standing in her place. "Ah, thank God. That is so much better." The spirit said. "Amber!" Alex called. "Oh, hey Alex. Good to see you again, honey." "Honey?" Cash asked. "When amber and I were alive, we were boyfriend and girlfriend. We both died when my car skidded off an icy road and crashed into the concrete wall of a building. But, not even death could separate us." "That's right. We've stuck right by each other, no matter what." Amber said. 'Wow. That's amazing." Katrina said. " Oh, right. I haven't introduced myself to the girl of the hour yet. Hello, Katrina. I'm Amber. I'm the spirit Carter and Iza placed inside you." "So, all of this is real.." "Yup. Unfortunately, and completely. But, hey. That's also a good thin, in a way. Cause, look, you've changed. You've been wanting to, but just couldn't find the right medium to help you, right? Well, looks like you found it. A little extreme, but hey, you can't argue with results. How do you feel?" 'I, I feel.. I feel great. Like a huge weight's been lifted off of me." "That's great. I'm glad. I've really grown to like you over the time I've been with you, Katrina. I hope we can be friends. Instead of possessor and possesie." "Well, though I'm not a hundred percent on what's going on, I figure, you helped me. And I'm grateful. And if all you want in return is a friend, well, sure." "Well, put there, girlfriend." Katrina reached to shake Amber hand. The light from before appeared. 'What was that?" 'We'll explain everything on the way out. Let's just get out of here for right now." Carter said. "Yeah. Uh, let's go back to my little world." Cash said. "What? We using that as a home base now? Alex asked. "Why not? It's pretty open. Could hold everybody." "True. Okay, sure. That'll work. Now let's go." The group headed back up towards Cash's mental world. Along the way, as promised, everything that had happened was explained to Katrina. 'I see. So that's what's going on." "Yeah. Listen, Katrina. I'm really sorry. Iza and I never intended for any of this to happen. We expected things to go a lo smoother. But, that's not much of an excuse. It wasn't right for us to drag you into this. But, it was the only way we could find. I'm very sorry about all this, but, if you could find it your heart, we'd really appreciate your help." "Well, there's no way to undo the past. We just have to move forward. And, I do I kind of owe you for helping me take the first step forward on my road to becoming a better Katrina. And, I really can't do anything else right now. And I want to be as much help as I can possibly be for Cash… so, sure. I'll lend a hand." "Thank you, Katrina." "You guys have got some huge hearts, you know that?" Amber asked. 'Well, like I said when I overcame my shadow, all I should strive for is do the right thing. And right now, that's rescuing everybody and helping you guys." 'Right. What he said." Katrina said. Cash looked up. "Okay, here we are." Cash opened the door to his world. " After you." Cash said. "Merci, mon amour." "I love it when you speak French." "Well, it is the language of love." Cash nodded and then motioned for Katrina to step in. Once everyone was inside, Katrina looked around. "So, this is what your mind looks like from the mental plane." 'Yup. Not as fancy as yours but…" "I like it." "Hmm?" "I like it. It feels homey. I feel as comfortable here as I would if I was still in my own mind." "Oh. Well, okay that. Uh, hey, Kate?" "Hmm?" 'Um, look if I've ever done anything to make you feel like your not worthy of me, I'm sorry." "No. That was my own fault. I made myself feel that way. It was my own lack of confidence that me made me feel that way. Not you. No, every time you saved me, it only made me love you more. But, can ask you a favor?" "What? Don't want me to protect you anymore?" "No. I know you. Even if I did ask you to do that, you'd still protect me anyway. Cause that's just who you are. But, I do want you to try not to do something for me." "What?" 'Try not to get any stronger than you already are. Okay? I want to catch up to you I terms of inner strength, and I can't do that if your always one step ahead of me. I want us to be equals. I want our future kids to look at both of us and be proud of what they see. I want them to look to both of us for strength when they feel weak. But, I can't be that example of strength for them when I'm still lagging behind you. So, please, try not to get any stronger, okay?" "For you, babe, I'll try. You can't guarantee anything, but I'll try." "That's all I'm asking. Thank you." Cash nodded and then said 'Okay, now I've got a question for you." 'What is it?" "Well, I really want to get a move on and rescue everybody else, but, I don't want to go if you feel tired. So, do you want to take a break before we go?" "No. I feel fine. When I ready to go whenever you give the word. But, how do you feel?" "I feel fine. Don't worry about me." "Well, if your both ready to go, shall we move on to the next munk?" Carter asked. "Yeah. And look, the door next to Katrina's is red." 'That means that hat's Alvin's little world then, right?" Katrina asked. "Yeah." "Alright then, let's go in and get him." "Right. Just hang on in there, bro. We're on our way."**


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Cash walked over and pushed the red door open. He stepped inside and the others followed him. Katrina, the last one in, shut the door behind her. She then looked around at Alvin's mental world. "A giant concert stadium. With huge, yellow a's all over the place. Why was I expecting something like this?" Katrina asked. " He sure is proud of his first initial, isn't he?" Amber asked. "Yeah, he sure is." "He once said that he likes it so much because it's the first letter of the alphabet, and he really likes being number one." Cash said. " But, that's beside the point right now. The point right now is we need to figure out where he is." "Well, when we do a concert at a place like this, we usually hang out back stage until it's time for us to go on. So, maybe he's back stage somewhere?" Katrina said. "Worth a try. Let's go look." Cash said. The group headed down to the stage, climbed up onto it, and then entered the back stage by going through the enormous curtain hung up at the back of the stage. Of course, it was red with a massive yellow a in the middle of it. Katrina checked out the back stage area for a moment. 'Looks exactly like it does in the real world." "Well, Alvin's all about the music. And Brittany. Yeah. Music and Brittany. I'd say those are his two biggest loves." "Which one's the biggest?" Amber asked. "Like you need to ask? I'll give you a hint. It starts with a b." "Brittany." 'Yup. Come to think of it, I wonder why there's no pictures of Brittany around here." 'Well, all of your best memories that involved me had a whole wall of your world all to themselves." Katrina said. "Oh, you noticed that huh?" 'Yeah. But, don't worry. I don't see it as a bad thing. It just shows that you keep yourself organized, even mentally." "Well, Agito did tell me to always try to keep my mind, body and spirit in harmony with each other. And part of that involves making sure that the mind is organized." 'Right. Well, Alvin's no samurai like you, but, he is kinda similar to you in other ways. So with that in mind, I'd say that, since they aren't scattered all over the place, Alvin's probably got all of his favorite memories that involve Brittany stored away in one of these rooms, like how you kept all of your favorite memories involving me on that one wall.." Katrina said, motioning to the various rooms they passed while walking through the backstage hallway. " Hmm, maybe Alvin and his shadow are in one of these rooms too. Cause I sure don't see them out here in the hall." Cash said. "Hmm. Like, maybe, some kind of dressing room? That's where rock stars usually hang out before the show, right?" Carter asked. "Hey, yeah. That's right! My head must still be a little messed up to forget that. Yeah, that's gotta be where he is. Cause, think about it. A lot of other rock stars, unfortunately, keep their dirty little secrets in their dressing rooms back stage, so…" Cash started. " So all we have to do to find Alvin and his shadow, is find his dressing room. Cause that's probably where he'd keep his secret." Katrina finished. "Exactly, babe. Okay, everybody split up. Find that dressing room." The group split up and checked all the nearby doors. Eventually, Katrina found a door that seemed to be locked. She could hear voice on the other side. 'Cash!" She called. "Come here." Cash came over. "What is it?" 'Listen." Cash put his ear to the door. "Two sets of Alvin's voice. Bingo. Okay, let's get in there." Cash tried to open the door. "It's locked." "Yeah. I was about to tell you that." "Man, Alvin must really not want anyone to find out his secret." "There's always the possibility that his shadow locked the door, Cash." Carter said. " He might have tried to leave, and it stopped him and locked the door to keep him in to his secret." 'Which is very unlikely, because Al doesn't know what's going on." 'Just like me." Katrina said. "Right, which means he needs our help. And that means we have to get in there. Hmm…alright. Stand back. I'm gonna try to kick it in." Cash said. The others backed up. Cash ran at the door, jumped up and planted his foot right smack dab in the middle of the door. He managed to kick it hard to knock it open. The crew immediately burst in as soon as the door was open. This, of course, caught Alvin, and his shadow's, attention. "What? Cash, Kate, what are you guys doing here?" 'We're here to get you out of here Alvin." Cash said. While Cash talked, Katrina noticed that the walls of the room were covered with anti-Cash posters. They were pictures of Cash with dark red cancellation marks drawn on them. "Oh, good. Cash is here. Now, this can end." The other Alvin said. "What? No! Cash, move!" Alvin yelled. "Huh?" Was all Cash managed to say before the other Alvin had Cash pinned to the wall, with one hand around his throat. "Ack!" Cash groaned. "No! Let him go!" Alvin yelled. "Why? This is what you wanted, right? You wanted Cash out of the way, so you could be head munk again." "No…not like this." "Well, I told you, Alvin. This could only end one of two ways. Either you get over your stupid jealousy, or you get rid of Cash." "I, I'm not jealous of Cash" "Oh, sure. You can say that, but I know the truth. What your really feeling is obvious to me as the nose on your face. You can't stand him. He steals all the spotlight. Everybody turns to him when there's trouble, completely overlooking you. 'I've got good leadership skills. I'm brave. I'm strong. I'm a good fighter. Why doesn't anyone ever listen to what have to say?' Isn't that what you've been thinking? And that co-leader idea? Boy, that burns you, doesn't it? The fact that, though Cash has already said, in front of everybody, that the both of you share the leadership role, everybody still only listens to Cash. Nobody listens to what you have to say, unless you happen to say something that Cash thinks is a good idea. Boy, that sure sucks, doesn't it? It used to be that you could get your brothers to do almost anything. Simon took a little bit of work, but you could break him down. And Theodore, well, he'd do pretty much whatever you told him to. Yup, you were pretty much king. Then, Cash here came along. Now, nobody pays attention to you. Your ideas don't matter. And that pisses you off to no end, doesn't it? Admit it. You know it does." " 'grr' Shut up!" "You never were good at admitting the truth, huh, Alvin?" "I said shut up!" "See? That's how I know I'm hitting my mark. The more I tell the truth, the angrier you get. I'm doing exactly what needs to be done." "What?" "Oh, nothing, Tell me, Alvin. What keeps you from just out right hating Cash? What is it? Huh? Don't wanna say it? Fine, I'll do it for you. It's one word. Brotherhood. You can't bring yourself to outright hate him, because your brothers. But, your not very good ones, are you? I mean, look at this. While you just sit there, another you strangling your brother. If brotherhood means so much to you, then why don't you do something to stop me? It can't be because you don't know what to do. No. You know what I think it is? I think your not stopping me because, in a way, right now, your getting to do something you once had the urge to do. But that pesky feeling brotherhood held you back. But now, in a manner, you can cut loose. You can finally get revenge on Cash for taking your spot as head munk!" "No, stop it." " I think it's time to finish this!" The other Alvin cackled. "NO!" Katrina yelled. She had been listening this entire time. She had been hoping that Alvin would stop his shadow, because she knew only Alvin could truly defeat shadow Alvin, but she knew that it was up to her. She knew he wasn't going to do what he needed to do, so she rushed in and tried to rip shadow Alvin's grip loose. He swatted her away like nothing. "Kate!" Alvin yelled. This scene made Cash mad. He wanted to beat the stuffing out of shadow Alvin for hitting Katrina, but he was pinned to the wall in such a way that he couldn't move. Meanwhile, Alvin sat in confusion. He was confused by this whole situation enough as it was, before Cash and Katrina had stormed in. Now, Alvin was so confused that he wasn't sure what to do. "Alvin!" He heard Katrina yell. He looked over to her. "Listen to me. Only you can stop him." "But, how? If he's strong enough to hold Cash up like that, then what am I supposed to do?" "You have to admit the truth , Alvin. You have to own up to what he's talking about and over come it." "But.." "Look, I know it's hard. I had to do the same thing not too long ago. But, it's the only way. These things, these shadow munks as we call them, I don't have time to explain what they are. Right now, the only thing you need to know is that telling the truth is the only way to stop him once and for all." " I.." "Alvin, if you don't do something, the other you is gonna kill Cash!" Alvin's eyes widened. Then, they narrowed in anger and his fist clenched. He charged the other Alvin and socked him in the jaw, hard enough to loosen his grip on Cash and knock him down. Alvin picked a violently coughing Cash up off the floor. "You okay, Bro?" Alvin asked. "Yeah. I'll live." "Good. 'sigh' I know what I have to do. You stay right here." Alvin walked over closer to his shadow. "Hey, get up. I know there's no way one punch beat you. So get up." Shadow Alvin stood up. "That's better. So you know, if you move so much as an inch towards Cash or Kate, I'm gonna deck you again. You got that?" Shadow Alvin nodded. "Good. Now, listen. Kate told me how to stop you, so here goes. What you've been saying, about me being jealous of Cash and being close to hating him, it's true." Cash looked up at his brother. As if sensing his brothers eyes on him, Alvin turned to Cash. "Yeah, that's right, bro. I'm jealous of you. I mean, look at you. Your strong, your fast, your agile, your smart. In terms of physical abilities, your unmatched. Ain't no sense in denying that. Hell, your like you're the ideal comic book hero. Shit, if superheroes were real, and one was looking for somebody to pass his mantle onto, you'd definitely be in the running. And me? Well, I think I'd be lucky to get chosen to be a sidekick. But, that's to be expected. You got samurai training. Me? I've never even taken a karate class. Yeah, I know the munk-fu moves, but hell, you came up with most of them. All I've been doing lately is following you. And that's the problem. I used to be head munk. The only head munk. Then you came along.. At first I was like 'cool I got another brother I didn't even know about.' Then, everybody started focusing on you. And, admittedly, I was jealous, cause I was used to being the center of attention. But, after we had our kendo match and you said what you did, I thought everything was gonna be okay. I thought everyone's interest in you was due to exactly what you said. Because you were the new guy. And, I had to admit, you had an interesting background. One that everybody would want to know as much as possible about. So, for a while, I just wrote it off. But, then, we started having all those adventures. And nobody bothered to ask what I thought we should do in those situations. Least, not that I remember. Sure, a lot of them only you were qualified to deal with. But, there were a few that people could say 'maybe we need a second opinion here. Alvin, what do you think?' But, no. It was only ' Tell us what to do Cash.' Now, I guess it's a good thing that everybody trusts your judgment so much, but, just once, I wanted to be asked about what I thought we should do. I wanted to be leader again. Sure, I might have done the same things you did. But, that wasn't the point. The point was the principal of the thing. That somebody realized that I had the skills of leader and that made them decide to ask me what to do. I wanted to be acknowledged for what I could do." 'Oh, Alvin…" Katrina said sympathetically. "But, I've realized something. Being jealous of you is stupid. Cause, a lot of what you got, I've got too. I might not be as strong or fast or whatever as you, but I'm still pretty well off. I mean, you got a smoking hot girlfriend that loves you unconditionally, and I do too. You got some great friends and so do I. We're a lot a like, now that I think about it. And, if I want to be looked to for leadership just like you, then I need to keep something you once said in mind. You said that if put my mind to it, I could just as good, if not better, than you. I've realized that, complaining doesn't get the job done. No. You gotta get out there and do what you gotta do. That's how you get the job done. If I wanna be looked to as a leader like you, then I've got to stop whining and start trying. Yeah. I'm not jealous anymore. I'm determined. I'm determined to at least, one day, have somebody call me 'our other fearless leader'." Alvin said with a confident smile. He then heard strange laughter behind him. he looked back at his shadow. It was laughing. "Good job, Alvin." Shadow Alvin said in a strange voice. Suddenly, as with the shadow munks before him, lines and cracks began to form all over Shadow Alvin's body. The light began to shine through the crack. "What's going on?" Alvin asked. "No time. Just cover your eyes, now! This next is really bright." Cash said. "What?" "Just do it!" Alvin and the others covered their eyes just as Shadow Alvin exploded. When the gang opened their eyes, they the spirit of a brawny young man standing where Shadow Alvin once stood. "Ah, man. That's better. Man, I felt cramped in that little form." The spirit said. "Danny!" Amber yelled. "Oh, hey guys." The spirit said. "What the.." Alvin said. "Oh, right. Better introduce myself. Hey there, Alvin. I'm Daniel. You can call me Danny." Alvin scratched his head for a moment. "Okay." HE said, looking at Cash and then to Kate. "Can one of you please tell me what's going?" "Well…" Cash said. He began to explain everything to Alvin. A few minutes later, he finally finished. "And your completely serious about all that?" "Do I sound like I'm lying?" "No. And I'd know if you were. That's one thing your not very good at. So, all this is real." "Yeah. Look, Al. You got every right to be mad at Carter and Iza, but, they were desperate. And we can understand being desperate. We've done some crazy things for sake of doing the right thing. I'm not asking you to forgive and forget exactly, but, I'd like it if you'd put it aside and help us. After, we've still got to rescue the others." 'Including Brittany." 'Yeah. Matter of fact, if I remember how those doors I told you about are laid out in my little mental world, then she's next. The door to her world is right next to the door to yours." 'I'll do anything for Brittany. Hmm. Carter." "Yes, Alvin?" "I think I can find it in me to forgive this mess if you do all you can to help me rescue Brittany and the others.' "Of course." "Alright then. I'm in." "Me too." Daniel said. "So, you're the spirit they attached to me huh?" "Yup. And I'm here to help you, Alvin. Whatever you need, just ask." " Hmm, like they say, a friend in need is a friend indeed. Okay, I'll be sure to call you if you need, my 'persona'." Daniel nodded and stuck out his hand. Alvin shook it and the light signaling that the bond had been made appeared. "What was that?" "That's the light the signals that the bond between munk and spirit is completed. Now, Daniel can truly function like your persona." "Oh. Okay then." "Welcome to the team guys." Amber said. "Good to be here. Uh, Cash?" "Yeah. " "Can we got get Brittany now?" "Sure. Let's go." Alvin nodded. "Hang on, Britt. I'm coming."


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

The crew head back to the entrance of Alvin's world. All the way back, he talked about how awesome it looked. "Okay, Alvin. We get it." Cash said. "Your world looks sweet. There's no denying that. But, we don't need you going on and on about it." 'Jeez, lighten up, Cash. I'm sure yours is just as a great." "Actually, out of all of us, I'd say mine is the plainest." "Hmm. I believe I hear an air of envy in your voice, Cash." "Shut up, Alvin." Katrina, who was walking next to Carter, looked worried. "You alright, Katrina?" Carter asked, noticing her look. 'I'm fine, but, I don't know about, Cash. I mean, I don't know about an air of envy, but, I do hear a bit of tiredness in his voice. What's wrong with him? Before we went into Alvin's world, he said he was fine." "Hmm, well, I have a theory." "What is it?" 'Well, this is just a theory, but I think Cash is starting to feel the strain." "Strain?" "Yeah, the strain of having so much extra energy contained within his mind. I mean, normally, a person only has their own mental energy contained within their mind. That forms their astral projection form here on the mental plain. But, Cash has more than that right now. He's got his own mental energy, plus mine, yours and, once we get back, Alvin's mental energy contained within his mind. And then there's the spiritual energy from Alex, Amber and Danny. Cash has got six times the normal amount of energy locked up inside his head. And, it seems that the strain from carrying that extra load is finally starting to affect him. And the fact that shadow Alvin tried to strangle him probably didn't help." "So, you mean, we're wearing him out just by being around him?" "Basically, yes. But, Cash probably doesn't care. He wants it this way. He doesn't want everybody to be separated anymore, so he'll gladly bear the strain." " I see. Thank you, Cash. Please, just hold out a little longer." 'Gotta say, Kate. You got yourself a good one" Amber said. " Don't I know it. That's why we're already engaged." "Engaged?! Like, to be married?" Carter asked. "Yup. Matter of fact, all of us girls are engaged to the boys. We know, thanks to a near death experience Jeanette had after she was bitten by a black widow, that we're meant to be together. So, why go against what's meant to be?" Carter still looked surprised, but he nodded. "Hey, guys! Hurry up!" Alvin yelled. It was know that the three of them noticed how far behind they had lagged. "Oh, sorry. We're coming!" Katrina yelled. She ran to catch up. Amber took off after her. "These chipmunks.. They're full of surprises." Carter said to himself, before he ran to catch up. When they reached the door, Cash told Alvin "Now, don't you dare say one word about what my world looks like." "I won't. Man, have a little faith, Cash." 'Alright, let's go. Next, stop, Brittany's mind." The group stepped inside Cash's mental world. Alvin looked around. "Well?" Cash asked. "I thought you told me not to say anything." "I was expecting you to say something anyway." 'Well, it's definitely more compact than mine, but, it's pretty nice. Feels kinda homey." "That's what I said when I first saw it." Katrina said. Alvin nodded and then said "Okay, we've talked about this place. Now, where's the door to Britt's world?" "Over there, next to yours." Cash said. Alvin turned to see the pink door. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go." The others nodded and followed Alvin to the door. Alvin pushed open the door and the group entered Brittany's mental world. Cash took a look at his surrogate sister's world. "A giant castle. Hmph. Would've been disappointed in Brittany if it'd been anything less." "Yeah, nice. Now where's Britt?" Alvin asked. "Well, it's a castle based on Brittany's mind, so I'm guessing that makes her queen of the castle. So, I'm guessing she's where any good queen would be in her castle." "The throne room." Alvin said. "Bingo." 'Are you sure it's not the dungeon? I mean, royalty used to keep the unsightly stuff in the dungeon. So, it makes sense that Brittany would have her secret locked up in the dungeon." Carter said. "True. But, you don't know Brittany the way we do, Carter. Despite our situation, I don't think Brittany would've appeared anywhere in here less than the throne room. And, judging from I've read online and history books, some pretty candid things went on in the throne room too. So, she could be there too." "Well, you do have a point." 'Look, I'm not saying your wrong. I'm just saying, we know Brittany. There's just something about her that tells us that she's not in the dungeon. But, we're not eliminating that possibility. If she's not in the throne room, the dungeon is the next place we'll go." "Alright. Let's get going." The group headed inside of the castle. It was very extravagant looking on the inside, as one would expect a castle to be. "Man this place is big. How are we going to find the throne room?" Danny asked. "Simple, we split up and look." Cash said. He stopped at a four way intersection in the hallway. "A four way split. Perfect. Okay, Kate and I will go on ahead this way. Alvin, you and Danny take the right hallway. Carter, you take the left. If you find the throne room, give the rest of us a holler." "Did you just say holler?" Alvin asked. "Yes, I did, and so what? Stay focused, Alvin. We don't have time to be messing around with what I say." 'Your right, your right. Okay, Danny. Let's go." "Right." "I'll get going too. I'll let you know if I find anything." Carter said. 'Right. Let's go, Kate." "Right." The crew split up. Eventually, it was Alvin and Danny who found the throne room. At least, they thought it was the throne room. "It's got the biggest door out of all the rooms we've passed by. So, it might be the throne room." "Take a look inside to make sure." Danny said. "Right." Alvin pushed open the door slightly. Inside, he saw two Brittanys. "Bingo. Danny, go get the others. I'm gonna stay here. Keep an eye on Britt, just in case." "Okay. I'll be back in a second." Danny took off and Alvin turned to watch the two Brittanys. He couldn't hear what they were saying, since they were all the way in the back of the very large room, but he had it figured out which one was the shadow. "Hang on, Britt." Alvin said, gritting his teeth. He wanted to go in now, but he figured it was best to wait. If something went wrong, he figured he would need all the help he could get to set it right again. Alvin didn't have to wait long. Cash and the gang came running up a few moments after Danny had went off to fetch them. 'Are they in there?" Cash asked. "Yeah, and it's not hard to figure out which one's the shadow." Cash looked inside the room. "Yeah, I see her. The one sitting on the throne itself." "Right. So, can we go in there now?" "Yeah, and since she's your girl, you go in first." "Gladly." Alvin kicked the door the rest of the way open. "Brittany!" He yelled. " The real Brittany turned to face Alvin. 'Alvin?' "I'm here, Britt. Your gonna be okay, now." "Ah, finally. The loyal family shows up." The shadow Brittany said. "You know Brittany, I don't think your worthy of them. Not with how you think of them." "What's she mean?' Alvin asked. "Don't be thrown, Alvin. Shadow Brittany's doing exactly what all the other shadows before her did. She's starting to tell Britt's secret. So, get ready. We have to help Brittany over come this and turn her shadow back into her true form. But, stay on guard. Shadow Brittany could turn violent, like your shadow did." Cash said. Alvin nodded. He looked back to Brittany. She was receiving a long, hard look from her shadow. Neither one of them seemed to have paid attention to Alvin and Cash's conversation. Suddenly, shadow Brittany's gaze snapped over to Alvin and the gang, then back to Brittany. "Nope, not worthy of them at all." "What are you talking about? Worthy of them? I don't get what your talking about." "Oh, but you do. You know exactly what I'm talking about. You know what you think of them, and you know that that's what makes you unworthy of them." "Hey, Cash." "Yeah, Al?" "We gotta get shadow Brittany to spill the beans right?" "In order to move on, yes. This is taking too long." "I know. Okay. Time to hurry this along. Hey, shadow Brittany!" Alvin yelled, beginning to walk towards the two Brittanys. 'Are you speaking to me?" The shadow Brittany asked. "Of course I am. I can tell my girlfriend from a copy. But, that's not the important thing here. What's important here is that I know what you trying to do here, and I know how this is supposed to end. So, hurry up and spill your guts. Tell me what Brittany really thinks of us." 'Alvin!" the real Brittany yelled. " Britt, you have to trust me. This has to be done. I'll explain why later. Just trust me and get ready to do something really hard." "Wh-what's that?" "Admit the truth." Brittany's eyes widened. She was ashamed of her secret. She feared how her friends and family would react to hearing it. 'But, Alvin…" "Listen, Britt. I don't have time to explain exactly what's going on here, but, just know that we've all gone through this. Your not alone. Matter of fact, I had to face down another me and admit to what he was talking about. It wasn't easy, but it had to be done. And you have to do it now. I know it won't be easy, but don't worry. We're here to support you and no matter what your secret is, that won't change. After all, in our own ways, we all love you." "Aw, that's so sweet." The shadow Brittany mocked. She then became very serious and said 'So, you really want to know her secret?" "It's the only way to end Britt's suffering here. So out with it." 'Fine. First, I'll be nice and ease any fears you might have. Brittany's secret isn't that she's lost any love for any of you. She still cares about you as much as she ever has." "Well, that's great. Now, let's hear the truth." "Fine. The truth is, Brittany doesn't think your enough for her." 'What?" 'She doesn't think your enough. You, them, the others. Everybody she knows. Your not enough. But, I suppose that's a little confusing. Let me explain. You know about her monophobia, right? Her fear of being alone." "Yeah." "Well, recently, for whatever reason, it worsened. Suddenly, she found herself needing all the attention she could get. Not for any narcissistic reasons, but to keep her from going crazy because of her fear. That's why she's been calling for the lead singer spot on so many of your songs lately. Cause after all, when a band plays, who's everybody looking at? The lead singer, of course. And, if that's Brittany, then all eyes are on her. Which helps put a proverbial band-aid on the deep-seated wound that is her monophobia. But, that's not where her secret comes from. Not even close. Her secret comes from a thought she had. One she's too scared to put into words." "And that is?" "As I said, she thinks your not enough. You and all the others, aren't enough to pacify her monophobia. Your loyal to her to a fault, but she doesn't have the kind of faith in you all that she have in return for that loyalty. And, she's afraid that if you found out that she thinks that, you'd get mad and leave her. Her true friends, hell, her freaking family would get mad and leave her. And then all she has is fans, which are nice, but not quite as good as real friends. Basically, if she admitted that thought, she's afraid that she'd end up alone. And, that would be ironic, wouldn't it? A desire to not be alone, leading to being exactly that." "Tha-that's enough." Alvin heard behind him. He turned to see Brittany stand up. "No more. They've heard it, no shut your big mouth!" "Brittany.." Alvin said. "It's true, Alvin. What she said, it's all true." Brittany began to cry. "I really thought that. And I was so scared of what you all would think of me if I said that. I really did think that you'd leave me. I, I just don't think I could take that. I don't ever want to be alone. I could stand it. But, now, you all probably hate me, for having so little loyalty to you. Hard to say I blame you. Oh, I'm so ashamed of myself." Brittany sunk to her knees again, in tears. Alvin walked over and knelt down, placing his hands on her shoulders. 'Brittany, look at me." He told her. She looked up. 'I wanna tell you something. Something important. So look me in the eye." Brittany was scared to do so, but she looked Alvin in the eye anyway. "We can never hate you. Not truly anyway. Look, we love you. We could never hate you. Could we say it if you made us mad? Well, me, I don't think so. I love you too much to say I hate you. The others? Well, maybe, if they got mad enough. But, they wouldn't really mean it. Cause, after all, they love you too. there's more to all of our relationships than what meets the eye. We're more than a group of friends. We're a family. And unless one member does something despicable, no other member of the family could ever truly hate them. Look, you know I plan to marry you one day. Hell, we're technically engaged. So, you and I are family. And Kate, Jean and Ely, they're your sisters. They're tied to you by blood. So, obviously, they're your family. And Cash, Sy, and Theo, well, didn't you once say that they feel like the brothers you never had? I pretty sure you did. And know something, far as I can tell, the feeling is mutual. Your one of the sisters they never had. And so, that makes them your family too. And you know that Ms. Miller, and mom and Dave and Xavier all care a lot about you. So, they're family too. My point here is that you have a lot of people, that no matter what you do, no matter how bad you screw up, will never find any hatred for you in themselves. Cause a good family just can't hate each other. And, that's what we are. We're a good family, no doubt about it. So, we'd never, ever hate you. So don't ever think that again. And another thing you should know. We will never leave you all alone. And that's because of the same reason we could never hate you. Because we're family and we love you. We're here to stay. We're not going anywhere. Now, I know that all that might make you feel worse, but don't let it. We know your fear and we know how bad it can be. We understand. When your afraid, lots of things you wouldn't normally think about cross you mind. Because, when your afraid, your vulnerable. And when your vulnerable, a lot of things can happen. And that's what happened with your secret thought. You have to know, Britt. We understand you a whole heck of a lot more than you think we do. Any time you feel alone, just know, we're there and we understand anything you might be thinking. Okay?' Brittany stood up. 'Alvin.." "Yeah?' 'Thanks to you, I know something now. Something I'll never forget." "And that is?" "Your enough. All of you together, or just you alone, Alvin. Your enough. So long as you're here, I'll never have to be afraid of being alone." Alvin nodded. "And thanks to that, I'll never think your not enough ever again. I, I love you all." Brittany said, tears streaming down her face. "Hmph." They heard. They turned to see shadow Brittany laughing. 'That was beautiful." She said in a different voice. The same process from before took place. Alvin covered Brittany's eyes when shadow Brittany exploded. 'Ah. Feels good to be back to normal." The spirit said. "What?" Brittany said. 'Oh hi, Brittany. Let me introduce myself. My name is Casey. Nice to officially meet you." Brittany wiped her tears away and said ' Okay, what's going on?" Cash and Carter explained everything. "Please, Brittany, we could use your help." Cash said. "Well, Alright. Let's go." "Right, let's get a move on." Casey said. "You'll be with me all the way, right, Casey?" "Every single freakin' step. Cause we're friends, right?" "Of course." "Well, let's promise to walk together until this is over." "Yeah, let's shake on it." The two girls shook hands and the bonding light appeared. "That was bonding light you told me about, right?" "Yup. Now you're a full fledge member.' "Great. Now, let's go rescue the next one." 'Right. Hmm, if I remember correctly, the next door was blue." "Dark blue or regular blue?" 'Dark." 'It's probably Jeanette's door then. She wears a darker shade of blue than Simon." "Alright then. Let's go rescue our brainiac sister."


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

On the way back out of her world, Brittany, like Alvin, marveled at her inner world. 'I have got to figure out how to get in here more often. This place is awesome. And this is really based on my mind?" "Every bit of it." Cash said. He looked up. "There it is. The door back to my world." "Yeah, it's gotta be. It's jet black." Casey said. " She points out the obvious a lot, doesn't she?" Katrina asked Amber. "All the time. She can be a real ditz some times, but she's undyingly loyal. Oh, ha!" "What?" "I just made a joke and didn't even realize it." 'Joke?" "Yeah, don't you get it? I'm a ghost, and I said 'undyingly'. Get it? Ghost, undie? Get it, get it?" "Uh, sure. Heh heh heh." "Her sense of humor is weird, huh?' Alvin asked Danny. "Yeah, but she's a good girl. Katrina's lucky to have her be her persona." Danny noticed Alvin staring at him. 'What?" "Just getting a good look at you. I'm trying to figure something out." 'What?" 'Why shadow Alvin was able to so easily overpower Cash. I didn't really get until just now. I mean, I'm not a weakling, but I don't think I could out muscle Cash like that. Shadow Alvin was so strong, cause you are. Least, you look like you are. What do you bench?" " Nothing now. When I was alive though, I could bench about 350 no sweat. One time though, I pushed my self all the way to five hundred, but I had to let it go right after I got it over my head, cause I could feel my arms giving out." 'Dang. I wish I could lift that much." "How much do you bench?" "Right now, about 150. Tch, man. We're supposed to be so much alike, and yet you can lift more than me." "Hey, don't sweat it. Let me tell you say something. How old are you? Thirteen right?" "Yeah." " Well, when I was thirteen, 150 was what I could bench too." 'Really?' 'Yeah. I only got as strong as I was before I died because I was training to become a WWE wrestler." "Really? I love the WWE. The guys and I watch it every night that it's on." "Yeah, I was trying to get on Monday night Raw. But, the night before I was supposed to meet with Mr. McMahon to talk about a contract, I got hit by drunk driver and his truck. Hit and run." "Man, sorry about that." "It's okay. I mean, in the long run, it's all for the best. I was going to end up being a champion to somebody anyway. If I'd made it onto Raw, I would've been a champion to the kids who watched me wrestle. Cause, I was gonna be one of the good guy wrestlers. Never would've turned into a heel, no matter what the higher ups told me. But, now, I'm a champion of justice, fighting to save a lot of poor unfortunate souls. And, as a bonus, I' made some really cool new friends. So, it all worked out. But, I didn't mean to use my strength to hurt Cash." 'Yeah, that was my fault. But, everything's okay now." "Yup." Cash had stood by his door this whole time, listening to his family make small talk with their spirits. "Hey, guys!" He yelled. Everybody's heads snapped up to look at him. "Um, we gotta go get Jeanette remember? You'll have plenty of time to talk to your persona when we're done with the rescues." "He's right. We're on a serious mission guys. Let's save the small talk for later." Alvin said. The others nodded. They entered Cash mental world. "Nice place you got here, Cash." Brittany said. "Thanks. Okay, on to Jeanette's world." Cash said, heading for the dark blue door. "Um, hey, Cash?" Katrina asked. "Yeah, Kate?" "Um, before we go, I gotta ask, are you feeling okay?" 'I'm fine, why?" "Well, you sound kinda tired, and when I told Carter earlier that I thought you sounded tired, he thought it was because your feeling the strain of having to carry our mental energy, which makes up the forms we're in now, and the spirits spiritual energy inside your mind. At the time, counting Alvin and Danny, he said you had six times the normal amount of energy locked up inside your head. And, with Brittany and Casey here now too, you've got eight times the normal amount. And after we get Jeanette and her spirit back, it'll be ten times. Then twelve times after we rescue the next munk, fourteen times after that and finally, once we've rescued the last munk, it'll be sixteen times the normal amount. You hear me? Sixteen times! I'm worried it might be too much for you." "Kate, it doesn't matter to me." 'Huh?' "All I want is for everybody to be together again. Some mental strain and fatigue is a price I'm willing to pay to make that happen. Look don't worry about. Once we get everybody back, we'll find a way to wake ourselves up and return everything to normal. And we'll do it before anybody has to worry about my mind giving out from the strain or something. I promise. Now, let's go." Cash walked over and pushed open Jeanette's door. The others followed behind him. "Told you." Carter said as he walked by Katrina. "One day, I'll be that strong." Katrina said to herself. She then followed everyone else into Jeanette's world. She shut the door behind her and looked around. Jeanette's world, rather fittingly, took the form a gigantic library. "Whoa!" Katrina said. "Dang, I knew Jeanette had a big brain, but, wow." Brittany said. "This place is huge. Where do we start looking for Jeanette?" Alvin asked. "Well, let's think. Alvin was in the dressing room of his world. Britt was in the throne room of hers. And Kate was in the basement of hers. So, there's a theme here." "And that is?" Brittany asked. 'Everyone so far has appeared in part of their world that, in the real world, is usually safe, but can also hold secrets. So, with Jeanette's library here, I'd say it's probably a corner or something. Cause it doesn't seem like this place has multiple levels." "Hey! I just thought of something." Katrina said. 'What is it, Kate?" "Jeanette's favorite section of the library is the non-fiction section. And, at the library she usually goes to, they have the non-fiction section in the northwest corner of the building. And, on top of that, Jeanette said that, when she's having a bad day, she goes to that exact corner, and all of a sudden, she feels comfortable and safe." "So, if all that correlates to here and now, then that means we need to head to the non-fiction section. Okay. Let's go." The group headed over to the non-fiction section. Sure enough, they found Jeanette and her shadow. Jeanette was on her knees and her shadow stood nearby. 'Jeanette!" Katrina and Brittany yelled as they ran towards their sister. "Girls…what are you doing here? And where is here? It looks like the library, but something seems off." 'We'll explain later, Jean. Right now, are you okay? That other you over there didn't hurt you, did she?" Brittany asked. "No. I'm okay. But, who is she? I'm me, so who is she?" "Well.." "I've told you already, Jeanette. I'm that part of you that you've been trying to repress. The part of you that really wants to lash out at those that have hurt you." "She's been saying things like that ever since I got here, where ever here is. I don't know what she's talking about." "Oh sure, you don't." shadow Jeanette said. "But, tell me, Jeanette. How do you feel, now that Brittany's here?" "How do I feel? I feel relieved, I suppose. I finally have some familiar faces around, other than my own. And that's comforting. So, I suppose I feel relieved." "Relieved, eh? Are you sure you don't feel, oh I don't know, angry?" "Angry? No, I don't feel angry. Why would I? I love my sister." "Oh, really? Well, on several occasions, I believe you felt the exact opposite of love for her. And rightfully so. Because, on every single one of those occasions, Brittany treated you horribly." "Hey, shadow Jeanette?" Brittany said. 'What?" "Sorry to interrupt but, we've got to get Jeanette out of here and get on to rescuing the next chipmunk. So, let's wrap this up. I know how this whole process your trying to set up is supposed to go down. Your trying to get Jeanette to confront her secret feelings. So, just hurry up and say it. And be quick about it. Like I said, we're on a schedule here." "Br-Brittany…" Jeanette stammered. "You gotta trust me on this, jean. I know you don't want her to start revealing what you'd rather keep hidden, but right now, it's the only way to move forward. So, get ready. Okay, you chipette wanna-be, let's hear what you have to say." 'Oh, Brittany You don't get it, do you? Don't you realize what the problem Jeanette has Is? No? Alright, I'll tell you. It's you." "What?" "you heard me. You're the problem. Her problem is her anger, which you are the primary inspiration for. So, in essence, you are Jeanette's issue. But, If that's not simple enough for you, I know something I can say that'll make it plain as day for you. Something I just remembered that poor, poor Jeanette has wanted to say for so long." "Wh-what's that?" ' Ahem. It is, and I quote, 'Brittany, I hate you, you bitch!'" "What?!" 'Britt, remember what I told you." Alvin said. "R-right." "Oh, quit trying to make her feel better, Alvin. She deserves to be hated. Especially by Jeanette. Oh, poor Jeanette. Your mind and good hearted nature are incredible gifts, ones that Brittany constantly takes advantage of. For example, does anyone who was around the time remember the sisters incident? If I recall, Jeanette and Brittany were placed together as a team for a science class project. And all they had to do was take care of a young pig. It wasn't a full grown pig. It was a child. Probably no more than a few years old. And all they needed to do was take care of it for a few days. And with the two of them, that would've been easy. But then, Brittany decided that she wanted to join the sisters. And, because Jeanette wasn't liked very much by the sisters, Brittany didn't refer to Jeanette as one of her own kin. She told them she was her lab partner, and they said they felt sorry for her. Imagine that. Sorry for Brittany, the girl who traded her own flesh and blood for a stupid club! But, poor, long suffering Jeanette tried to ignore it, even as the anger and disappointment began to build in her heart. She pushed it down, tried to stay as the good, kind Jeanette everyone loved. Tried to make it seem that it was like water rolling off of a duck's back to her. In other words, she tried to make it seem that didn't bother her. And she even went so far as take on all the responsibilities of raising the pig by herself. And also, showing that she has an inhuman amount kindness inside her, she went so far as to pose as Brittany's maid when the sisters came to visit. Once again pushing away the respect she deserves, all just so Brittany could be happy. Now, thanks to Jeanette's efforts, she and Brittany got an A on their project. However, Brittany did not get what she wanted, as she was denied entry into the sisters. And what did Jeanette do about this? Rather than acting pleased by this, as she should have, she turned sympathetic and gave Brittany a bouquet of flowers and some sweet as candy words to make her feel better. And rather than slapping the fire out of the bitch like she should have, she walked arm-in-arm with her down the hall, as if nothing had happened." 'My God….when you put it that way, I sound like a monster." Brittany said. "Don't listen to her, Brittany." Jeanette said, finally climbing to her feet. " I don't hate you. I love you. Cause after all, you're my sister. We're bound together forever, and nothing will ever change that. And, you know I'd never call you bitch. Heck, I hardly ever curse. I use substitution words, like heck and dang. But, even so, I would never call you anything close to bitch. And, yes, admittedly, you can be kind of insensitive, down right mean really, and occasionally, almost cruel. But, what that other me failed to mention is the other side of you. The one that redeems you to me no matter what you do. Your kinder, gentler side, which recently seems to have become much stronger. You've become very giving and loving, and lots of other things. And, I knew that that was always in you. It's just that we had to wait for certain circumstances to occur in order for that to come to the surface. I'd like to think that dating Alvin some how brought these actions out of you. Perhaps being in love with him 'softened you up'. and, if that's the case, then thanks are in order to Alvin, and by association Cash, since it was him who got use all together in the first place. Thanks, you guys." Cash and Alvin both rubbed the backs of their heads and said 'No problem." 'But, Jeanette, if you don't hate me, then what is shadow Jeanette running on?" "Running on?" "Okay, let me explain, before Ms. Moody over there interrupts. She looks like she's about to, so I'll give you the quick version. Shadow Jeanette runs on the darkness in your heart. That's what gives her the ability to look and sound like you, as well as know everything you know. But, the darkness she gets strength from has to come from somewhere. That darkness was created by some sort of secret you've been hiding. So, if you don't secretly hate, then what is fueling your shadow?" "Oh, hmmm. Ah, I think I know." Jeanette turned to her shadow. "You spoke about me repressing my anger. I believe that that is where the darkness that gives you strength came from. My anger festered within me, giving rise to the darkness that makes you strong. But, I had good reason to repress my anger. I'm well aware that I am a pacifist by nature, and as such, I don't like to lash out at anything for any reason. But, I especially don't want to lash out at my loved ones. My friends and.. No, let's call them all what they really are. My family. I don't want to lash out at my family. I'm too afraid of hurting them, which is something that I pray I never do. But, the problem is, I'll never be able to stop feeling anger when something aggravating happens to me. At least, not with out short-circuiting my brain, or something like that. So, how do I go about getting rid of this anger, with out hurting anyone? I've tried doing my favorite activity, reading books, in order to calm myself, and I have even tried meditation. But, it was all for not. So, what should I do?' "Go mid-evil on something." Cash said. "What?" 'You need to vent Jeanette. You know that. You mentioned the things you've tried in order to vent. But, you see, anger isn't something easily dealt with by pacifistic means. No, you need to get, how should I put this, a little more hands on. Physical. I.E., you need to get violent. But, not violent as in go beat the crap out of people. That road only leads to trouble, and some cases unfortunately, death. And we don't you want you to do die, that's for sure. No, I mean violent in your approach to dealing with your anger. Find something that can be real workout and pour all your anger and frustration into that. For example, when I'm having a bad day, I don't take it on anybody. Least, not in the real world. No, what I do is I go turn on my Xbox, and I put in something like a fighting game, or maybe a gory action/adventure game. And then, I take out all my frustration on the bad guys in the game. And that works out, cause, when I turn the game off, it's no harm, no foul. Every one is okay, I feel a lot better. And those video regenerate you turn the game back on anyway. So, do something like that. Get yourself a violent videogame, and start kicking bad-guy butt until you feel better." "You know, I think I might try that. Matter, it might be starting to work already. I feel much better." "Glad to hear it." Shadow Jeanette said in odd voice. "Here we go again. Everyone close your eyes." Alvin said. The process began again, and it end with the revealing of beautiful spirit girl, who slightly resembled Casey. "Anna!" Casey yelled. "Casey! I'm so glad to see you again." "Um, can some one tell me what's going on?" Jeanette asked. 'Yeah, sure. Allow me." Brittany said. Brittany went over everything and once Jeanette understood it, she quickly became friends with her spirit, who turned out to be Casey's cousin. They soon bonded. "Okay. Now that that's finished, what do we do next?" Jeanette asked. "We go rescue the next munk. Uh, let me see. What color was the door next to Jeanette's again? Oh, right! It was blue as well. So that means…"Cash started. " Simon is next." Jeanette said. "Right." "Well, let's go then."


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

The gang returned to Cash's world. Jeanette was intrigued by it's organization. "Everything is put away so neatly. That must be why it's so much smaller than mine." "Or any of ours." Alvin said. Brittany and Katrina nodded. "Yeah, well, there's no time to talk, guys. Come on, we're almost done. Three more munks and this part of our adventure is over." Cash said. The others nodded. "So, Jeanette, would you do the honors?" Cash asked, gesturing towards Simon's door. Jeanette nodded and walked over to the door. "What do you think is Simon's problem?" She asked, placing her hand on the door. "Who can say? We'll only know once we find him. And with that in mind, I say the sooner we get in there, the better. That's what's best for him and everybody else, I think." Cash said. "Yeah, your right. Okay, let's go." Jeanette pushed the door open and everybody else followed her inside. They looked around. "It looks like a massive research facility." Jeanette said. "It fits him." She continued. "Yeah, but, where is he?" Alvin asked. "Well, knowing Simon, he's probably in the main lab of this facility. And before you say anything, Carter, I did take into account that places like here have special rooms where they hide things. But, I've seen enough sci-fi movies to know that lots of shady things happen in the main lab. So, we'll start there. Now, let's go." Cash walked off, down a nearby hallway. "Dang, it was like he read my mind. Uh, he can't do that, can he?" Carter asked Katrina. "No, he can't. I'm the one in the relationship with the powers. And no, I didn't tell him what you were thinking." "Then, am I that easy to read?" "I don't know about that. But, I do know that Cash is pretty good at reading people. So, he probably just used his people reading skills to tell what you were thinking. Now, come on. Cash is getting really far ahead of us." "Uh, right." The group walked through the building. Eventually, they found the main lab. They noticed a strange little machine near the door. 'What is this thing?" Alvin asked. "It looks like one of those password input things they have in TV shows." Cash said. "So, we gotta put a password in in order to open the door?" "Seems that way." "'sigh' Jeez, Simon." "Hey, Jean. You got any ideas what the password might be?" Brittany asked. "Um, I have one." "Well, go try it." "Okay." Jeanette walked up and punched in the code. 'There. Eureka. Simon said that that's one of his favorite words. Let's see if it takes." "Incorrect password. Access denied." A computerized voice said. 'What? It's not eureka? Then what could it be?" Jeanette asked. 'Let me try something." Cash said. "Let's see. J-e-a-n-e-t-t-e." "Password accepted. Access granted." The door slid open. "I'm the password?" "Naturally. I mean, in the real world, if Simon needed a password, he'd probably use something important to him. And, what's more important to him than you?" Jeanette smiled and nodded. It was something so simple, yet it still made her happy to know that she was the password. "Okay, let's get in there." Cash said. Everyone headed inside. They walked down a corridor and then into the main lab itself. As the door opened, they saw Simon sitting in a chair watching his shadow running around, messing with things, like a mad man. "Simon!" Alvin and Cash yelled. "Oh, hello, everyone." "Are you okay, Simon?" Cash asked. "I'm fine. I've been watching this other me. He says he's working on some kind of experiment, and yet, as far as I can tell, none of the things he's doing will lead to anything at all, let alone a successful experiment." "Man, your awfully calm. Aren't you wondering why there's TWO of you here? Or where here even is?" Alvin asked. "Well, of course I have. I've been thinking about that since I woke up. But, I haven't been able to think to far. Because, as you know, I think best when given the room to walk around. Something about that wandering around helps me think. And so, I've been trying to do that. But, this room, while interesting, is too small to do any serious walking. So, I tried leaving the room. And when I did, he stopped me." Simon said, pointing to his shadow self. "And, when I asked him why I couldn't leave, he told me that I hadn't faced my hidden side yet. And, until I did that, I couldn't leave. And, admittedly, I have yet to figure out what the heck he's talking about. It doesn't really make sense. Face my hidden side? What is that supposed to mean?" "Um, Simon.." Alvin started. "Oh, don't pretend that you don't know what that means, Simon." Shadow Simon said, turning to face the real Simon. 'You know exactly what I meant. You just don't have the guts to do it. That's really something. You've got all that brain power, which would make you an amazing warrior if used properly, and yet, your too much of a coward to try to use it to fight even the most basic battle. The struggle with one's own emotions." 'What? What does that mean?" "Oh, you know what it means, you big scaredy-cat. You now how you feel. Your scared. Your afraid, all the time. That's why you work so hard. Even when the love of your life, your brothers and your own body tell you that you should stop and rest, you push on. Now, while that resolve is admirable, it doesn't cover up your fear. Sure, others might not see it, but you can't hide anything from me. Because, after all, I'm you." "No, your not. You can't possibly be me." "Oh, but I am. How else could I know how scared you really are? Poor little Simon. Scared to death of one solitary word." Simon's eyes noticeably widened. He knew now what his shadow was talking about. "No! Don't say it!" "Oh, but I have to. That word is failure." Simon hung his head. " Huh? Simon's afraid of failure?" Brittany asked. "Yes, and do you know why? It's because he's afraid of disappointing the ones who matter most to him. Namely, all of you." "Disappointing us?" Jeanette asked. "Yup. He's afraid that, if he doesn't pull off everything he sets out to do, he's going to disappoint you and the rest of the world." "So, that's why he's been working so hard and taking on such tall orders." "Exactly." "But, I have to. No one else can do it. No one else has the ability that I do. Well, no one except for jeanette. But, I don't want her to have to tackle the kinds of things I'm working on. They're all so stressful and I don't want her to burn herself out. She's too young to go to waste like that." "So are you, Simon." Cash said. "Or, did you forget, though she's a month older, you and Jeanette are still the same age?" "No, I didn't forget. It's just that…' Simon hung his head again. For the first time in a long while, he was at a loss. He didn't know what to say right now. "Hey, Sy, look at me." Cash said. Simon looked to his elder brother. "listen very carefully, okay?" Simon nodded. 'You can not disappoint us." Simon's eyes widened in surprise. 'I can't?" 'No, you can't. Cause, your Simon Seville. One of the two smartest talking chipmunks on the face of the earth. A regular child prodigy really. And how could we be disappointed in having a child prodigy for a brother? We can't. I mean, who can claim that they're related to the world's best anything? Nobody I've ever met, that's for sure." "Look, Simon. I'll admit, we can be aggravated by your big brains sometimes. Like, when you bring home the best report card and make the rest of us look bad. But, that's natural. Sibling rivalry and all that. But, even so, inside, we're still proud of you. And, about your work, you know you need to take it easy, man. After all, your only human. Well, human like. You know what I mean. My point is, even though you've got a got big brain, you've still got the same amount of energy as anybody else. And that means, just like everybody else, you gotta rest every once in a while. And, that won't hurt a thing. The world can survive on it's own long for you to take a nap or something. And speaking of that, you gotta, your still young, Simon. Your only thirteen, man. You got a lot of years left in you. You've got plenty of time left to do everything you want to do. Finish all the projects you want to finish. Solve all the problems you want to solve. You've got plenty of time to do it. So it won't hurt anything if you take some time off every now and then. And there's plenty of guys out there that can pick up the slack for you while you rest up." Alvin said. 'Alvin and Cash are exactly right, Simon." Brittany said. "And, if you want proof that you can take your time, look at Jeanette. Remember when you showed us our future with that time machine of yours? Didn't Jeanette have the Nobel prize in literature in that future? Well, I'll tell you, I have seen Jean write down word one of the book she's supposed to win the Nobel prize for. And the world's still getting along just fine. And why hasn't she written down anything? Tell him, Jean." 'It's because I know that I still have a long life ahead of me. Plenty of time in which to write that Nobel prize winning book. Right now, all I'm interested in is spending time with you and helping you as much as I can. Because, I love you." "Jeanette…" "See, Sy. It's okay to cut loose for a while. The world's not going anywhere and you ain't dying anytime soon. So just chill. And like Cash said, remember that you can't disappoint us. Irritate? Maybe a little, but that's just sibling rivalry, like I said. Hey, is any of this sinking in, or are we wasting our energy?" "I'm listening, Alvin. I understand. Thank you all for setting me straight." "No problem. And hey, remember the other day at the beach? You got to see Jean in your favorite bikini. And why did you get to see that?" 'Because I let you talk me into taking a break." "Exactly. See? Kickin' back every so often has it's perks too." "Yeah, your right, Alvin. Thank you, everybody. I understand now. I can't disappoint you and it's okay to take a break. And, to be honest, my body has been sluggish lately, probably because of my lack of sleep. Once I get out of here, I think I'll take a nice long nap. And, after I wake up, hmm, Jeanette?" "Yes?" "Would you like to go somewhere? Just the two of us?" "Like, on a date?" "Yeah. I mean, it's been a while since we've been on one and that's my fault. So, let me make it up to you. Is there anywhere you want to go?' "I can't think of anything right now, but I'll think about it." "Good enough for me. I love you, Jeanette." "I love you too, Simon." "Okay, cool your jets, you two. We've still got some more stuff to do here." Cash said. 'Like for instance, take a look at Shadow Simon." Everyone looked to see Shadow Simon undergoing the transformation process. "Good job, Simon. You've faced your hidden side." Shadow Simon said, in a new voice. "What's going on?" Simon asked. "No time. Just cover your eyes. Now!" Everyone covered their eyes just in time. When they opened them, they saw a young man, with glasses, standing in the spot where Shadow Simon had once stood. 'Who are you?" Simon asked. "I'm Dexter. You can call me Dex." "Okay. Um…" "Let us explain, Simon.' Cash said. And explain they did. "I see." "So, will you help us, Simon?" Carter asked. "Like I can say no? If my family needs me, I'm always willing to help." "We need all the help we can get." Alvin said. 'Then I'm in. Dexter, your going to help me right?" 'Of course. But, I'd rather you call me Dex. That's what my friends call me. And that's what I hope we can be." "Of course. And you can call me Sy." The two shook hands and bonded. 'Okay, so what now?" Simon asked. 'On to the next munk. The door was green. Dark green." "So, Theo's next." "Yup." "Alright, let's go."


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

The gang returned to Cash's world. 'So, where's Theodore's door?" Simon asked. 'Right next to yours." Cash replied. Simon looked. "Oh, so it is. Okay, is everyone ready?" The others nodded. "Okay, well, allow me." Simon pushed the door open. The crew entered Theodore's world. It took the form of a large kitchen. 'Wow, I feel like Alice in Wonderland, after she drank the shrinking potion." Brittany said. "Wait, was it the potion that shrunk her? I thought that was the magic cupcake. Or, then again, maybe it was the cupcake that made her grow real big." Katrina said. "Uh, girls, we don't really have time to talk about books." Alvin said. 'Alvin's right. We need to find Theodore." Simon said. Brittany and Katrina nodded. "But, it might be harder to find him than anyone else. This place is enormous." Jeanette said "You said it, Jeanette. I mean look. That cookie crumb over there is as tall as you." Katrina said. "Well, Cash, any ideas on where to look in here?" 'Well, following the theme I talked about earlier, Theodore should be somewhere in here that's usually safe, but can also hide secrets. So, I think that we might want to check the cupboards." "Right, because they're usually safe, but people sometimes put things they don't want others to see in there." Alvin said. Katrina counted the cupboards in the oversized room. "One, two, three… there's about six cupboards." "And there's six of us. So everyone check out a cupboard with your persona. Carter, you wait here and let us know if you see anything." Cash said. 'What am I supposed to see?" "I don't know. It's a kitchen, so maybe some giant, mental rats. Look, just let us know if you see anything out of place." "Okay." "Alright, let's go." Cash said, beginning to climb the nearby shelves in order to get up to the cupboard he and Alex would examine. The others followed suit. Cash reach the door of his cupboard and tried to open it. " Arg! It won't move. Alex, give me a hand." "Right." Alex tried to help cash push the door open, but they couldn't make it move. "Damn, that's really heavy." "Man, I know it's big, but it shouldn't be this hard to open it." Cash said. He leaned his head back, wondering what to do next. He spotted a large metal lock hanging off the side of the door. "Hey, Alex, look." Alex looked up. "A lock. Do you think?" "Yeah, it's gotta be the one. But, just to be sure… Hey, guys!" "What, Cash?" Alvin yelled back. "Do any of the doors on your cupboards have locks on them?" The other scanned their cupboards' doors. 'No!' They all yelled back. "Then I hit pay dirt over here. This one's gotta be the one. Hurry over here!" Everyone did as instructed. "So, how do we break the lock?" Alvin asked. 'I don't think any of us can climb that high. Not even you, Cash." "Yeah, I know I can't climb that high." Cash said. "Hey! I just had a thought. Cash, could you throw your sword that high?" Alvin asked. "I doubt it. Hmmm, but I did just come up with an idea involving weapons." 'Lay it on us." "Okay, Al, Sy, think about your sai and staff for a minute. That should summon a mental image of them that you can use." Simon and Alvin did as told. Their weapons appeared in the air in front of them and they grabbed them. "Okay, sweet. Now what?" "Make a little platform with them." Alvin and Simon crossed weapons in order to make a small, foothold sized platform. "Now what?" Simon asked. Cash jumped onto the platform. 'Throw me." "What?" Alvin asked. "You heard me, throw me. Use your weapons like a slingshot and throw me, as high as you can. I'll climb the rest of the way." "Uh, I don't think we're strong enough to do this, bro. Hey, everybody, lend a hand here." Everyone else either grabbed a hold of Simon's Bo staff or Alvin's sai. "Hey, Cash, just a quick thought. Why not have Alex carry you up there? Or, have one of us use our new power of 'persona' to blast the lock?" "I'm trying to get everyone to conserve as much energy as possible. We'll probably need all we can get when we face Vlad. And who knows how much energy either one of those ideas would use up?" "Point taken." "Hey, I'm not saying that those aren't good ideas. I'm just saying we need to conserve energy." Alvin nodded. He then said "Okay, on the count of three." Everyone nodded and readied themselves. "One…Two…Three! Now! Throw 'em!" Everyone combined their strength and threw Cash up as high as they could. When Cash reached the height of the toss, he grabbed on to the side of cupboard door and began to climb the rest of the way up to the lock. 'Whoo-hoo! Go, Cash, go! Man, that was good toss. We threw him half way up." Alvin said. "Actually, Alvin, if I've got my figures right, we actually threw Cash up three quarters of the way." Simon said. 'Really? Wow, we're stronger than I thought." They watched as Cash reached the lock. "Hello, Mr. Lock. Hello, and goodbye! Hiyah!" Cash kicked the lock as hard as he could. He managed to break it. The door opened slightly. "Woo!" Cash yelled, as he slid back down to his family. "Alright, push it the rest of the way open." Cash said, as he landed next to Katrina. Alvin and Simon began to push the door. "Push!" Alvin yelled. The door slowly opened. When they had it opened wide enough for them to enter, the crew went inside. Inside, they found Theodore and his shadow. Theodore's shadow looked slightly different than Theodore. It was taller than the young munk. "Hey, Cash, look. Theo's shadow." Alvin said. 'Yeah, it's taller than Theo himself. I'd say it's about the same height as you or me." "And, is it just me, or does it look a little bit older than him too?" Simon asked. "Now that you mention it, yeah, it does." Cash said. "What's up with that? All of our shadows were exact copies of us. Why's his different?" Alvin asked. 'It might be a reflection of his secret." Carter said. "Hmm, could be." Simon said. "Well, let's go find out. Theodore!" Cash yelled, running towards his younger brother. Theodore turned to his family. "Everyone.." Theodore muttered. "You okay, baby bro?" Alvin asked. 'Yeah, I'm fine." "Then why do you look so beat up?" Simon asked. It was now clear to everyone that Theodore had signs of battle damage all over him. "I was fighting him." Theodore said, pointing to his shadow. "He wouldn't let me out of here when I wanted to leave, and we ended up fighting. He might look like me, but he's a lot tougher. He's as tough as you, Cash. He almost knocked me out twice." "I see. Well, it's okay now, Theodore. We're here." "Yeah, you sit back and rest. We got this covered, baby bro." Suddenly, Shadow Theodore yelled out in anger. "I hate that phrase! 'Baby Bro'. I hate it!" "Cash, you think.." Alvin said. "Yeah, I do. Let's see what we can get out of him." "Right. So, tell us, baby bro, why do you hate that term?" Alvin asked. "Because it reminds me of the fact that I'm younger than you! Oh, why couldn't I have been born first? Being the baby means I have to listen to what everybody else says, and I don't ever get a chance to say what I want, or have people do what I want for once. But, if I was the oldest, then everyone would have to listen to me. But, no, fate wouldn't give me that one little favor. All I ever amounted to was a swing vote, between Simon and Alvin. But, then, Cash came along, and I thought things would get better. Cash took over so easily, and everyone was so willing to listen to him. I thought, well, at least I don't have to be stuck between a rock and a hard place. But you know something? I actually miss those days. At least back then I had a say. I didn't get to voice my real opinion, but I had a small say so in what happened. I thought things would get better when Cash came along, and on the surface, they did. But deep down, they just got worse. I lost my only chance to feel a little bit like I was in charge. Oh, and before I forget, there's something else I hate. I hate how everyone feels the need to speak for me, or put words in my mouth. Just once, in an important moment, I'd like to open my mouth and have my own voice come out!" 'We had no idea." Simon said. "Putting it that way, we sound like real jerks." Alvin said. "Yeah, now you see why I look like this." Shadow Theodore said. "This is how the real Theodore envisions himself. This is how he wants to be. This is what he looks like in those daydreams he has, right after he thinks about everything I just said. He sees himself like this, and do you know how you all look?" Cash, Alvin and Simon shook their heads no. 'You look like little babies. Like newborns, actually! Haha!" "Okay, that's enough!" The real Theodore said. 'It's time for you to shut up!" Shadow Theodore noticed Theodore's fist clench. "You can't beat me, Theodore. At least, not with your fists. I already told you, the only way to beat me, is to tell them the truth." Shadow Theodore said, pointing to the other chipmunk brothers. Theodore turned to his brothers. 'Guys, I…" "We know, Theodore. Everyone's got things they'd rather not talk about." Cash said. 'And, really, it's not your fault for feeling this way, Theo. Anyone treated like you've been treated would naturally feel that way. So, if your about to say your sorry for feeling this way, and I think you are, cause you've got your 'sorry look' on your face, please don't. If anyone should apologize, it should be us." Simon said. "Yeah, we're sorry, Theo. I mean, you're the same age as us, yet we treat you like a little kid. I guess it's because your not as tall as the rest of us, but that's not your fault, and that's not much of an excuse. We're sorry, Theodore." Alvin said. "Yeah, we're really sorry. And, Theo, you gotta know, if you've got an opposing idea to one of ours, there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. Brothers don't have to agree on everything. Would it be nice if they always agreed? Sure, but it doesn't have to be that way. If there's something bothering you about some plan that one of us has cooked up, just say so. I mean, it's not like we're not going to bite your head off. So, feel free to voice your opinions from now on, okay? I swear to you that we'll listen." Cash said. Alvin and Simon nodded. "I see. Thanks, you guys. You know, I feel really stupid. All this time, I could've spoke up, and didn't, man, I feel dumb. But, now I know, so everything's okay now. And you, being the baby isn't really all that bad. I mean, being the youngest means that I'll be the last to get grey haired." Theodore joked. "So now our baby bro's got jokes, eh?' Alvin laughed. Suddenly, the munks heard clapping. They turned to see that it was shadow Theodore who was clapping. They also noticed that he had shrunk, and now resembled Theodore completely. "Good job, Theodore. You've finally started maturing. But, even so, you guys be sure to help him, okay?' The Seville brothers nodded. "Good." Shadow Theodore said. And then, the transformation process took place. Cash, Alvin, and Simon covered instinctively covered Theodore's eyes when the bright flash of light came. When they looked back, they saw a slightly chubby young spirit man standing in shadow Theodore's place." "Who's that?" Theodore asked. "Hey, guys. I'm Luke. Nice to meet you." "Uh, nice to meet you too. Um, guys, what's going on?" "Well…" The elder Seville brothers explained everything to their younger brother. "I see. Well, if your all going, I'm going to. And, that's my decision." "And I'm going too." Luke said. "Then bond and let's go." Alvin said. Luke and Theodore did so. 'Okay, now it's time to go to rescue the last one." 'Is that Ely?" 'Yup." "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!'


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

The gang headed back to Cash's world. Theodore made a point to look at all the pictures on the walls, before turning to Eleanor's door. "Ely's the last one?" "Yeah. Once we rescue her, we're done with this part of our adventure." Cash said. "Okay, Theo. It's your choice. Do you wanna take a minute to gather yourself, or do you want to head right on in?" Simon asked. "I wanna go on in. but, uh, first, can I ask something?" "Sure." "How did you guys get your weapons in this place?" "Simple, we just thought about them." Alvin said. 'Thought about them?" "Yeah, if you just think about your weapons for a second, a mental image of them will appear and you can use that." Cash said. "Yeah, give it shot, Theo. Just think about your tonfa for a second and they should appear in the air in front of you. Then, all you have to do is grab them. Go ahead, give it a shot." Theodore did as told and quickly had his mental tonfa in his hands. "Cool." Theodore said, spinning his tonfa around. "alright, is everyone ready now?" Cash asked. Everyone nodded. "Alright, then, this is it. The last munk." 'Man, I know it hasn't really been that long, but it feels like it's been so long since this whole adventure started." Carter said. "We've definitely seen a lot of things in a short amount of time. And it's all been worth it. Now, let's end this and get back to reality." "Right. Let's go!" Theodore cried, pushing open the door to Eleanor's world. The crew entered. They found it to be very dark. "Whoa! Who turned out the lights?" Alvin said. 'Is Eleanor's world inside a black hole or something, cause there's no light anywhere in here." Brittany said. Cash decided to let some light into the room by reopening the door to his world and let some of the light from it into Eleanor's world. He reached for the door knob, but missed, because of the darkness. Instead, his hand struck something that felt very familiar. "Hey, guys. I think I've got a light switch here. ' "A light switch? Beautiful! Flip it, now!' Brittany said. Cash flipped the switch. The lights in the area came on. It was then that the munks could really see where they were. "Whoa! W-we're home!" Brittany said. Sure enough, Eleanor's world looked like the Miller house. "But, how is that possible?" Jeanette said. "Girls, I hate to burst your bubble but, you're not home. Cause here's the door back to my world." Cash said. "So, Eleanor's world takes the form of our house. Well, uh, at least we have the home field advantage here." Katrina said. 'Hmm.' Jeanette said, looking at a picture on the wall nearby. "What is it, Jean?" Brittany asked. "Look at that picture. Notice anything?" Brittany and Katrina looked at the picture. "It looks familiar. I think it's the same one on the wall in the living room. Wait, yeah. Yeah, it is. It's a family picture we took not too long ago. But, uh, where are we?" Brittany asked. In the picture, Miss Miller was in the back ground, and Eleanor stood directly in front of her. But, to her left, right and far right, where Brittany, Katrina and Jeanette should've been respectively, there was nothing but empty space. 'Why's Ely the only Miller girl in this picture?" Brittany asked. "Well.." Cash started. "Theodore's shadow, before we set everything right, was taller and older looking than Theo himself. And that was a reflection of his secret wish to be the one in charge. And, Ely's a lot like Theo, so maybe this is a reflection of her secret." "So, is this, like, saying she wants the rest of us 'out of the picture'?" Katrina asked. "Well, it's a possibility. But, I wouldn't read too far into it. Not until we find Ely and her shadow." "Cash is right. So, girls, where do you think we should start looking for her?" Carter asked. "Well, there's her room, the kitchen, and maybe even the roof, if there is one to this place." Brittany said. 'Why the roof?" Carter asked. "Well, lately, Eleanor's taken to going onto the roof when she needs to think. It gives her some sort of peace. Because, she said, it let's her freely look out to the horizon and that helps her think. And, the roof can hide things on it." Jeanette said. "Yeah, usually stuff like Frisbees and junk like that, but sometimes it's more serious stuff." Theodore said. "Even so, I sincerely doubt that She's on the roof. Matter of fact, I doubt this place has roof." Cash said. "Well, that leaves the kitchen and Eleanor's room." Carter said. Alvin, who was standing near the entrance to the kitchen, leaned back, in order to look inside. 'She's gotta be in her room, cause she sure ain't in the kitchen." "Alright, to Ely's room we go." Theodore said. The munks walked up the stairs and hung a left. They walked to the end of the hall and soon stood before the door to Eleanor's room. "Check the door." Cash said to Alvin, who was closest to the door. "The last time were in front of a door like this, it was locked." "Yeah, back in my world. How'd you get in again?" 'I kicked the door in. Which I hope I don't have to do here." "Yeah, I understand. So, let's see if our little sister will make this easy for us." Alvin tried to turn the doorknob. It turned easily. "Great, let's go in." Alvin nodded and opened the door. Brittany was the first one in. "Eleanor?" She asked as she entered. When she was all the way in, she saw Eleanor laying on her bed, her shadow standing menacingly over her. "Hey! Get away from her! Get away from my sister!" Brittany charged in and shoved Shadow Eleanor out of the way, off the bed and onto the floor. The rest of the group rushed in. Jeanette and Katrina helped Eleanor off of the bed, which was strangely larger than it's real world counter part. It was much longer and the mattress was higher off the ground. This would've made it difficult for Eleanor to get off of the bed by herself. As the real Eleanor's feet hit the floor, Shadow Eleanor got up off the floor. "Damn it." Shadow Eleanor shrieked. "Why are you here?!" She asked, pointing at the rescuing munks. "We're here to rescue our baby, I mean, younger sister." Brittany responded. "She doesn't need rescuing! What she needs is you out of the way!" Shadow Eleanor yelled, pointing at Brittany. "And you too!" She said, pointing at Jeanette. "And you, and you,, and you!" She yelled, pointing to Katrina, Alvin and Simon in sequence. Cash noted that he and Theodore were the only ones Shadow Eleanor had not pointed a finger too. 'Hey, other Ely?" Cash asked. 'Yes, Cash?" Shadow Eleanor said, sounding very polite all of a sudden. "Why did you yell at everyone, except for me and Theo? What makes us special?" "Oh, I'd be happy to explain that to you, Cash. You see, your special because you actually support Eleanor, unlike these traitors." "Traitors?" Theodore asked. "Yes, traitors. While you, Theodore, love Eleanor and support her unconditionally, and once even prevented a bunch of capital a assholes from having their way with her; and while you, Cash, try to give Ely her time in the sun, everyone else casts her into the shadows. Overlooking her and her talents. And why? Is it because she's the shortest? Is it because she's so well mannered that they think she won't mind? Who can say for sure? All I know is that they only think of themselves. And the queen of them all is Brittany. She's takes valuable spotlight away from Eleanor for her own selfish reasons." "Hold it right there, you Eleanor wanabe. I'd like to make it known, right her and right now, that I've over come my internal issue that caused me to steal the spotlight like that." "Is that right?" "Yes, it is. And, I'd like to apologize to Ely too. I'm sorry, sis. I never meant to hurt your feelings. It's just that, my brain was all screwed up. I'll tell you about it later. For right now, just now that I'm better now and I won't ever steal your thunder ever again." Eleanor wasn't a hundred percent sure on what was going on, but Brittany sounded sincere, so she smiled and nodded. "Well, you sound like your telling the truth." Shadow Eleanor said. "I suppose your not a traitor anymore. But, the rest of you. What did you do to help poor Eleanor when Brittany stole her spotlight? Don't remember? Fine, I'll tell you. You did absolutely nothing! She loves you all like family, regardless of who's actually related to her and who's not, and yet, you can't stand up for her when she obviously needs you. To me, your no better than Brittany was! Who was the only one who immediately stood up for Eleanor? Cash! He was the only one who tried. He didn't succeed, but at least he tried. And Theodore? Know what he did? He bought Eleanor a ice cream cone at a near by dairy queen that day you went to the beach, in an attempt to make Eleanor feel better about losing her chance to lead a song for once. Now, those were small things, but they meant a lot. It showed that Cash and Theodore gave enough of a damn about Eleanor to at least try to make her happy. And the rest of you did nothing! Your all scum!" "Shut up!" Eleanor yelled. "I would never call my family scum! And I won't let anyone wearing my face do it either! So shut your big fat mouth!" "Oh, sure. You say that. But, this isn't about what you say. It's about how you feel. I know you inside and out Eleanor. Your true feelings betray your words. Qh, why don't you just tell them , Eleanor? I mean, you've always pretty much worn your heart on your sleeve until now. Why stop? Tell them how your really feeling. You feel hurt, betrayed, and disappointed. And worst of all, all of that was brought on by your own family." "I…I do." "What was that? Didn't quite catch that. You'll have to speak up." "I do feel that way. I did feel betrayed, but, I think it's partially my own fault." "What?" 'You said I'm really well mannered, and I guess that's true. I guess I'm so well mannered that it lures people into a false sense of security when they're around me. I'm always so collected that it seems like nothing bothers me. So, it makes it easier for people to forget that I can be hurt too. I guess I should be more assertive. No, not guess. I know. I know I need to be more assertive. And I will try to be in the future. After all, I'm bound to want things in the future, and one can't get everything one wants by being nice all the time. Sometimes, to get what you want out of life, you have to get tough. But, I don't want to get too tough. If I do, I feel like I might lose who I am. I, I need to find the balance between my kindness and my toughness, so that I can get everything I want out of life. And starting now, that's what I'm going to work on." Shadow Eleanor suddenly smiled and nodded, while saying 'good. That's what I wanted you to say." Then, the transformation process began. Brittany covered Eleanor's eyes when the flash came. when the munks looked, there was a slightly chubby, but still very cute spirit girl standing in Shadow Eleanor's place. "Who are you?" Eleanor asked. "I'm Emily. Nice to meet you." 'Nice to meet you too. Um, what's going on? Where's that other me?" "Well, Ely, it's like this." Katrina said. The Miller sisters explained everything to Eleanor. "I see." "So, will you help us, Ely?" Katrina asked. 'Of course I will." 'Great, thank you." "And I'll help too." Emily said. 'You two better bond." Alvin said. Eleanor and Emily did just that. "You know something, Ely?" Brittany said. 'No, I don't. What should I know, Britt?" "Your stronger than you look. I thought for sure that we'd have to tell you how to beat your shadow, but you proved me wrong. And I'm glad you did. I'm proud of you, sis." "Thanks, Britt." "Well, now that's everyone's together again, let's go back to my world and figure out how to get out of here."


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

The chipmunks returned to Cash's world. All the way back, Cash had his arms folded and his eyes closed. He was obviously deep in thought. He was thinking about how to get out of this situation. But, despite all of his wondering, nothing came to mind. Finally, everyone stood in the middle of Cash's world. Eleanor took a good, long look around. "This is a very interesting place you've got here, Cash. I wish I had time to see everyone else's too." "You may just get the chance, Ely. Cause I can't think of a damn thing when it comes to how the hell we're going to get out of here." "Yeah, I've been thinking about that too." Alvin said. "And?" "Nothing. Mind's a complete blank." "I have to admit, I've given some thought to it and drawn a blank too." Simon said. "Damn, how the hell are we supposed to get out of here?" Cash asked. "Guys, the answers right behind you." Carter said. The munks behind them to only see their 'personas'. "You mean them?" Alvin asked, pointing at Danny. "Yeah. Remember what I've told each of you. Combined, a person and a spirit can generate incredible. And all sixteen of you, working together, would create an enormous amount of power. And not just any power, but 'pure' energy." "Pure?" Alvin asked. "Yeah, pure. As in, untainted by the power of darkness. You guys, effectively, purified yourselves when you overcame your shadow selves. You threw away most of the darkness in your hearts, thus the energy the spirits can draw from you is pure. And, now that they're back to normal, the spiritual energy of the spirits is pure again. Combine two pure powers together and you get…" "One big burst of pure energy?" Alvin asked. "Well, yes. But, you also create a powerful light. And what does light destroy?" "Darkness!" Eleanor said, enthusiastically. "Now your getting it. And what is keeping you sealed up in here?" "Dark magic." Simon said. "Exactly. See, it's like the laws of magnetism. Two negatives are attracted to each other and create a stronger charge when they meet. But, trade one of those negatives for a positive charge and they repel each other and…" "And can even cancel each other out if they're strong enough." Jeanette said "Bingo. So, what are you waiting for? Hurry up and make that light!" "Okay, guys. Altogether." Cash said. "Get ready everyone, we're bustin' out of here." Alex said. The other spirits nodded. "Yo, Cash." Alvin said. 'What?" "Let's do this like they do in the game. You know what the main character does when he summons his persona for the first time, right?" 'Yeah, he says the word persona, syllable by syllable…oh! Okay, sure." "Well, lead us in the chant, leader munk." Cash nodded. "You ready, Alex?" Alex nodded confidently. "Alright then. Here goes. Per…so…na!" The rest of the munks followed suit in this chant. The spirits took the energy produced by the munks and used it to increase their own power. Then they combined all that power to create a brilliant burst of light. Carter faded out of the mental plane and returned to the real world. He could sense the darkness that was holding the munks being ripped apart by the great inner light. "Here they come." Carter said to himself. Suddenly, all traces of darkness disappeared. Eradicated by the light. The chipmunks eyes all snapped open at the same time. All eight munks sat up, slowly. Cash looked around. "This is.." 'Our house." Simon finished. "Then that means…" Theodore said. "Booyah! We're back, baby!" Alvin said. "Hmph, welcome back." Carter said. "Carter! What are you doing in our house? Come to think of it, why are we in our house?" Alvin asked. "Yeah, last thing I remember, we were in that construction site. " Brittany said. "Well, you guys didn't think we'd just leave you laying there in the dirt, did you? Of course not. Iza thought it would be best to bring you here, because it's familiarity to you might have some sort of healing effect I guess. We couldn't take you to a hospital after all, so I guess bringing you here was a good idea. Score one for Iza." "Speaking of her, where is Iza?" Eleanor asked. "You know something, Eleanor, that's a very good question. The answer is: I have no idea. She never said anything about going anywhere. 'sigh' I just hope that, wherever she is, she's safe." "Hmm." Brittany said, examining Carter. "What?" Carter asked. 'You like Iza, don't you?" "What? Well, of course I like her. She's my friend after all." "Is she just a friend, or is she something more to you?" "More?" 'A girlfriend." " Dah! Well, I suppose, by technical definition, she's a girlfriend. She's a girl, and a friend, so I guess that makes her a girlfriend. But,. not that kind of girlfriend. Ah, listen to me! I'm twenty six years old and I'm talking like I'm a kid again. Thanks a lot Brittany." "Hey, you're the one talking. I just asked a simple question. But, I guess I didn't really need to. It's blatantly obvious. You like her. You really _like_ her." "Okay, yes, I care a lot about her. And how could I not. Over the course of this adventure, we've gone through a kind of hell normal people couldn't dream of. So, I'd be natural for us to become much closer." "And it'd be natural to fall in love." Eleanor added. "Oh, don't you start, Eleanor. Look, it's not like I haven't considered the idea of me and Iza being together. It's just that, we've been so focused on our mission, that we haven't had time to work on anything else. Before we even think about anything else, we have to stop Vlad." "And we will." Cash said. 'But first, I need to make sure of something. Come, my persona!" Alex immediately appeared outside of Cash's body. 'You rang?" Alex asked. "Just making sure that this is all real and not a dream or something." "After all we've been through, you still thought this could be a dream?" "Hey, I've got a vivid imagination, and that means that I've had some pretty messed up dreams. I had to be sure." "Well, alright. Well, I'm going back in. Call if you need me." "Right." Alex disappeared back into Cash's body. "Alright, that proves it. We are officially exactly like the characters in the Persona game." Alvin said. 'And that's a very good thing too. Your ready to take on Vlad. But first, we gotta find Iza. Where the hell did she get to?" Carter asked. 'Um, Carter?" Jeanette asked, looking out the nearby window, into the back yard. " Yes, Jeanette?" "Was Iza wearing a red blouse and tight jeans the last time you saw her?" "Yes, why?" "Cause there's a lady in our back yard, wearing those clothes. She looks like she's in pain. She's grabbing her head, very tightly.' Carter's eyes widened. "Oh, no! It's happening! I thought we had more time! Did we calculate it wrong?!" "What's going on?" Cash asked. "It's the spell on Iza. It's kicking in. Iza always acts this way when the spell is starting up. In a matter of minutes, she'll become crazed and violent. A danger to all of us. We have to get her inside and tie her down.." "Hmm, actually, I've got a better idea." Cash said. "A better idea?" 'Yeah. It's one word and it starts with a p." "Your personas?" "Yeah. I mean, their power managed to break the spell on us, maybe it can break the one on Iza too." "I'd give anything for Iza to be freed of that curse. Let's do it. Alvin, help me get Iza inside." "Right." Carter and Alvin went and got Iza. They set her down easy in a chair in the living room. Iza grabbed her head. "My head! Oh God, it hurts! Make it stop, make it stop!" Suddenly, Iza's hands fell to her sides, as limp as wet noodles. Her eyes became dull and her pupils shrank. She then let out a long, berserk scream. "Carter, hold her down!" Cash yelled. Carter did as told. 'Okay, everyone. Let's do it. Persona!"


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

The chipmunks put as much effort as they could into creating the energy the spirits needed. Once the spirits had enough energy the launched themselves at the thrashing Iza. They collided with her and entered her body. Iza continued to thrash and thrash. At one point, her head smashed into Carter's nose because her thrashing. "OW! Damn it!" "Just keep holding her, Carter. Just a bit longer." Cash said. 'Hurry up, guys!" Carter yelled to the spirits. At that moment, as if on a cue, the spirits exited Iza's body and Iza herself fell limp. "Well? Did you do it?" Carter asked Alex. 'I think so. We the mental incarnation of the spell. It'd merged with Iza's own inner darkness." "Why am I expecting the next words out of your mouth to be something like 'so, in short, we had to fight shadow Iza' ?" Alvin asked. "Your good, Alvin. That's right on the money. That's exactly what we had to do." Danny said. "Did she own up to her secret and beat her shadow?" Eleanor asked. "Shadow Iza wasn't like us, Ely." Emily said. "She wasn't a transformed spirit." "Well, what was she then?" "Like I said, it was the fusion of the spell and Iza's own inner darkness." Alex said. 'In other words, the evil energy of the spell merged with the naturally present darkness in Iza's heart and created a kind of being on the mental plane, inside Iza's mind." Dexter explained. "I see. So, Shadow Iza was basically noting but pure evil energy given a solid form, relatively speaking of course." Simon said. "Exactly, Simon. Shadow Iza was just the common darkness that naturally exists in the human heart brought to 'life'." "Fascinating. But, um, it's not just the human heart that darkness naturally exists in, Dexter. I'm certain you can find it in us too." Simon said. 'Ah, Simon, you belittle yourself." "What?" "The way I, and I'm sure my companions as well, see it, you're as human as anybody else on the planet. And in some ways, even more so." "Yeah, you tell'em, Dex." Amber said. "Remember this guys. You may look like animals on the outside, but on the inside, where it really counts, your human." Emily said. The chipmunks nodded. Just then, they heard a soft groan. " Ugh, man. What happened to me?" They heard. Everyone's attention snapped over to Iza. She had finally come around. "Iza? Are you alright?" Carter asked. "Carter?" Iza asked. Iza looked up. "Carter!" Iza yelled, throwing a tight hug around Carter's neck. "The spell kicked in, didn't it? No, don't answer that, Of course it did. After all, I felt the symptoms. But, now, I feel fine. Better than I have in a very long time in fact. What did you do?" "I didn't really do anything. All your thank you's, belong to them." Carter said, pointing to the chipmunks and their 'personas'. "Ah, your awake. Thank God. And, thank you for curing me. But, how'd you do it?" "She doesn't remember? Didn't she see us inside her head?" Amber asked. "Guess not." Luke said. "We used our power to cure you. All that pure, good energy we brought to the party was too much for the evil energy of that spell that was on you." Casey explained. " I see. So, I assuming that the bonding process is finally complete?" "Yes, Ma'am." Danny said. "And you all, your all okay? No lasting side effects from the spell?" Iza asked the munks. "None as far as we can tell." Simon said. "Good, good. So, what happened in there? In side your minds?" "We'll tell you later. Right now, we have some evil ass to kick." Alvin said. "Well, hang on just a second there, Alvin. You guys just had to use your brand new powers twice. And, to undo some pretty potent magic. You have to be tired." Carter said. 'Nope, not me. Anybody else?" "No." Simon said. "I feel pretty good." Eleanor said. "I'm doing fine." Katrina said. "I feel like I just woke from the nap from hell, but otherwise, I'm good." Brittany said. "Well, you kinda did, Britt. Actually, we all did. Wake up from the nap from heck, I mean. But, none of us seem to be any worse for the wear." Jeanette said. "And that's good. Very good. And by the way, Jeanette, you know it's okay to say hell in a situation like this right?" "Yes, I know. But, I'm just used to saying heck." "Well, do whatever tickles your peach." "You got that from iCarly, didn't you, babe?" Alvin asked. "Yeah, and so what? It's different, it's new. Brings a little flair to a conversation." "Well, I can't argue with you there." "Anyways.." Cash said, trying to get everyone back on track. 'As you can see, Carter, we're fine. So, we're ready to go." "Yeah, so where do we go to start kickin' some evil ass?" Alvin asked, while cracking his knuckles. "Well, truth be told, we don't know where Vlad is." Carter said. "Neither Iza or myself have been able to sense him since we got into town. We figured he followed us, and we were obviously right. So, until he found us earlier, we kept a low profile. Make it harder for him to find us, you know?" "Um, opening a fortunetellers set up, which a lot of people know about, is keeping a low profile?" Eleanor asked. "Yeah, I mean, when I found out about it, I heard about it from a friend of mine the other day, and she's not usually well informed." Brittany said. "Well, we spread rumors around to people that could sense were the kind of people who would immediately jump on the internet and start talking about it, on the biggest blogging sites. We figured lots of people would see it on those sites. Lots of people, except for my uncle Vlad." Iza explained. "How could you be sure he wouldn't see it on one of those sites?" Cash asked. "Uncle Vlad wasn't one much for using the internet. He knew how to use it, but just preferred not to. He was old fashioned that way. And before you ask 'what if he changed his mind and decided to check out the internet for clues', let me tell you. Uncle Vlad has never, and probably, no, absolutely will never change his habits. Like, going out after dinner. He never did that, and he never will. So, I'm certain he'll never start using the internet." 'Okay, so how did he know you were here?" Eleanor asked. "He probably used his magic to track the spirits themselves. They're what he really wants." "Yeah, he's probably figured that we'll make a great next 'meal' for him, since we were strong enough to break through his barrier." Alex said. "So, a spirits strength is representative of the amount of energy they've got inside. In other words, the stronger the spirit, the more energy there is for Vlad to take." Cash said. 'Exactly." "But, I thought and was afraid that wouldn't take him very long to track the spirits. But, it took a lot longer for him to track them down than I thought it should. Maybe he's getting weaker. Like, it's been so long since he last 'fed', he's starting to lose strength." "I hope so. It'll make him easier to beat. But, I'll bet anything that probably thinks we're dead. He didn't check and finish us off, obviously, so he must think that that blast that knocked us out, killed us. Probably thinks the same thing of you, Carter. And since the spirits are still with us, maybe he thinks they were destroyed by the blast. So, in his mind, all of his enemies but Iza are dead, and he doesn't fear her at all. Which means, he thinks he's free to start feeding again, and probably will. So, that means we have to hurry. If we give him time, he'll recharge his powers up to full. Let's get moving." "I'll try tracking him, but he's been doing something, probably using a spell, to prevent me from detecting him." 'Let me help you then. I've got the same powers you do. Maybe we can strengthen each other enough to get around his spell and find out where he is." "Well, that could work in theory. Alright, let's do it. And by the way, Katrina, it's nice to meet another telepath." "Like wise." "Alright, while they're doing that, the guys and I will get our weapons and practice for a bit. Hone our skills and try to give ourselves as much of edge as possible. And then, we'll see what we can do about a battle plan. Oh, and before I forget, girls, Carter, Iza, I want you all to find something to use as a weapon. I don't feel right about anyone going to fight someone this powerful without a weapon. Even if you've got the power of persona, it couldn't hurt.' Cash said. Everyone nodded. "Okay, and while you guys are doing that, um, oh, me, Brittany and Jeanette will whip a big lunch. The food will give us lots of extra energy, which we can give to our personas." Eleanor said. "Just don't make it all be sugary stuff, Eleanor. Sugar might give an initial, immediate boost in your energy, but it won't last When the sugar rush is gone, so is your extra energy. Plus, the sugar rush might make it harder for you to concentrate." "I know all that, Carter. We're not making a mess of cookies or something. It'll be lots of food know to impart a large amount of energy to the body, and it'll the kind that lasts, with out any side effects." "Okay, Eleanor. Calm down. I was just saying.." "I know. Okay, come on girls." "Let's get started, Kate." "Right." "Let's go, guys." "Right behind you, leader munk." "Okay, uh, I'll just, uh…crap. What's there for me to do? Oh, well, I'll just have to think of something." An hour and a half later. "Okay, we're well fed, fairly well practiced, we know where Vlad is and we're armed. Still wish we could come up with a plan, but this'll probably get chaotic quick. So, really, a plan useless. Anyway, is everyone ready?" Cask asked. Everyone nodded. "Can we take your dad's car? Mine won't hold us all, but your dad's looks like it will." "Just be sure to top off the tank. I don't want anything let to tip Dave and Miss Miller off about what we did when they get back. Cause, I really don't want to have to explain this to them. It'd freak them out royally." Carter nodded. "You know something, Cash, I was thinking." Brittany said. 'About what, Britt?" 'About all this. Um, can we swear to keep this whole adventure a secret? Keep it to ourselves for, oh, I don't know, for life? I mean, we all had things we're not proud of brought out, and while that was actually a good thing, I'd rather not have to relive the embarrassment by telling the story to anyone else. And I don't think any of you really want to either. So, can we try to keep this one from ever seeing the light of day again, after it's over?" "Well, I guess I can live with that. Everyone else?" The other munks nodded. 'Okay, that's that then. If we talk about it, it's only amongst ourselves. But, in return for that one, I want everyone to promise something too.' "What?" Alvin asked. 'That we don't keep any other secrets. Alvin, you said it yourself when we rescued, Brittany. We're more than a group of friends. We're a family. And a good family shouldn't keep secrets. Every member of the family should know they can talk about what's bothering them to the others with out fear. And I know we're capable of being that kind of family. So, from here on out, other than the one secret Brittany's made us swear not to tell, we keep no secrets. Does everyone agree?" "Sure." Everyone said. "Alright then. Now, it's time to business." "I want to thank you guys." Iza said. "We drafted you into this, and yet you still found it in your hearts to help us. Thank you." "Hey, if Vlad had never been so greedy in the first place, none of this would've never happened. He started this. You just took extreme measures to end it. To set things right." Alvin said. "And on that note, we're off." Cash said. "Right. Let's go end this, once and for all." Iza said.


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Cash and Family got into the back of Dave's car, as Iza and Carter slid into the front passenger and driver seats respectively. "We ready to rock?" Carter asked, looking back at the munks. "Like you need to ask?" Alvin said. Carter nodded. "Okay. This is it. Let's do it." Carter put the car in gear and backed out of the drive way. Once he was in the street, he put it into drive and from there, he followed Iza's instructions. Eventually, the chipmunks arrived at a wooded area. 'He's in the woods?" Eleanor asked. 'That's where we sensed him." Katrina said. Jeanette noticed Cash's eyebrows lower, giving him an angry appearance. "Cash? What's wrong?" She asked. "I just realized something and it's ticking me off." He said. "What's that?" Brittany asked. "You don't recognize this forest?" "Not really. If you've seen one forest around here, you've seen them all. They all look alike to me." "Well, I remember it. I remember it very well." 'Well, what is it?" "Deep in this forest, is dad's grave." "Hey, your right. I remember when we went camping here. I remember seeing that tree over there. I remember it cause it was kinda funny looking. Your right, Cash. This is where dad's buried." Alvin said. " And to think that he's doing horrible things to some poor souls, near where dad is buried…" Simon said. "What if he's got dad?!" Theodore shrieked. "That's what makes me mad. Doing something so bad, near the grave of a man so good, just isn't right. On top of that, he might have captured dad too…" All four chipmunk brothers fists clenched tight. " If he has, he's done for." Alvin said. Brittany noticed a claw beginning to extend from Alvin's thumb. "Alvin, your hand." She whispered to him. Alvin looked at his hand. He clenched it again, while trying to calm down. He felt the claw recede back into his hand. "Alright, let's go." He said. "Wait, guys, your weapons." Carter said. The guys walked silently back to the back of the car and retrieved their weapons. The girls went and acquired their weapons as well. Brittany had a large kitchen knife, Jeanette had retrieved a large, metal stirring rod from Simon's lab, Eleanor had a baseball bat, and Katrina had an old mop handle. Carter had brought along one of Dave's golf clubs. He was going to make sure that he didn't dent it in the battle. Finally, Iza had a stun gun, which she always kept for protection. With their weapons firmly in hand, Carter locked up the car and the group headed into the forest. Iza prayed a silent prayer in her head. "Please, Lord. Grant us the strength to win this battle and end this once and for all." She thought. Meanwhile, Carter was silently begging for Tom's aide. "Please, Mister chipmunk, if your out there, watch over your kids." Eventually, the munks reached a strange cave. "Is he in there?" Alvin asked. "I'm sensing some seriously dark power coming from inside, so I'd say yes." Iza said. 'Me too." Katrina said. "Well, that settles it. Let's go." Cash said. He led the group inside. They followed the cave into it's deepest recesses. "Man, this is a big cave." Carter said. Despite the cave's size, they inevitably found Vlad. Nearby were all the spirits Vlad had captured. They were locked behind a powerful looking barrier. Apparently, he had moved them here, intending to start up his work as soon as his enemies were dealt with. "There he is. So, what's the plan? Do we jump him?" Carter asked. "Uncle Vlad!" Iza yelled. "Never mind." Carter groaned. "Ah, Iza. Delightful to see you again. And look, your pesky little friends are still alive. I should've made sure they were dead. I'll correct that now." Vlad charged up a quick blast of dark magic and shot it at the group. "Persona!" Cash yelled. Alex shot forward and punched through the ball. The two halves flew into the walls of the cave, off to the side of the chipmunks. "What the hell?" Vlad asked. "You wanted the spirits power, now your gonna get it." Cash said. "So, you've picked up some new tricks. Interesting. But, if you think they'll be enough to stop me, your dead wrong!" Vlad charged up another shot, but then broke it into two halves, one half in each hand. He then fired both halves at the munks. 'Move!" Cash yelled. And that's exactly what the group did. And so the battle began. The chipmunks attacked from all angles, launching a variety of different attack. Alvin tried throwing his sai, charged with Danny's power. But, Vlad filled his hands with the dark magic power he possessed and shot them down. This left Alvin unarmed, at least on the weapon's front. So, while he ran to pick up his sai, Cash and Brittany charged Vlad, with their sword and knife charged up with persona power. Vlad deflected Brittany's initial strike and shoved her to the ground. As he went to strike her with his own attack however, Cash lunged at him, making him jump away. Iza, who was behind Vlad and happened to be near where he landed, charged her uncle with her stun gun crackling away. However, the crackle of the stun gun's current was too loud. Vlad heard it, spun around, grabbed Iza's arm and performed a judo like hip toss, which threw Iza to the other side of her uncle. She hit the ground hard. "Ugh!" She grunted when she hit the ground. She opened her eyes to see Vlad looking down at her. 'You know, your being a very naughty girl, Iza. Attacking your own uncle." Iza yelled "Shut up!" And tried to sweep Vlad's feet out from under him. But, he merely had to jump out of the way to avoid it. However, the munks weren't going to let any opening go to waste. Simon and Theodore quickly formulated a plan with Jeanette and Eleanor. The plan was to have Jeanette and Eleanor use Simon's staff and Theodore's tonfa as platforms to jump off of, in order to get as much height as possible before attacking with both their weapons and personas. They made the plan and they quickly enacted it. Vlad managed to hear Jeanette's takeoff and avoided her attack, however, Eleanor's attack struck true. Emily slammed into Vlad's chest and Eleanor caught Vlad in the back of the head with the baseball bat. Vlad was knocked off his feet. Every member of the group quickly rushed in and pointed their weapons at Vlad. "Stay down, if you know what's good for you." Eleanor said in a threatening way. 'It's over." Cash said. "You really think you've beaten me? Well, your wrong. I've just gotten started." As soon as the word 'started' had left his mouth, Vlad released a massive burst of dark magic in the form of a shock wave. This bowled everyone over. However, Carter and Iza managed to get to their feet quickly enough to attack Vlad once more. Carter swung the golf club with all his might at Vlad's head, but Vlad saw the attack coming and ducked it. He then delivered a thunderous uppercut to Carter's jaw, then released a powerful blast of energy into his stomach. This sent him flying into the chipmunks, knocking them over again. Angered by this Iza tried to kick her uncle in the back, but Vlad saw her out of the corner of his eye. He spun around quickly, grabbed her leg and forced it back down to the floor of the cave. Once he'd done that, he grabbed Iza by her collar. "Enough, Iza! I have had enough of you!" Vlad shocked Iza with her own stun gun and then threw Iza to the ground. "Now stay down this time!" He then turned his attention back to the munks and Carter. "And you lot. I've had it with you as well. It's time for you to die!" Vlad shot dark magic energy, in a form that looked like lightning, from his finger tips and shocked the downed fighters. The group writhed in pain for a moment, then stopped, but only because Vlad had stopped. "No. That's not enough. I want to end each and every one of your miserable lives up close and personal. But who to start with?" Vlad noticed Carter stirring. "But of course. The original pain in my backside." Vlad walked over and picked up Carter by his collar. "I've said it before and I'll say it again. I've been waiting a very long time for this." No sooner had Vlad said the last word of his sentence, than he felt a sharp searing pain shoot across the hand he was hold Carter's collar with. The pain caused Vlad to release Carter, who fell to the ground. "Sorry, but you'll just have to keep on waiting." Vlad heard. Vlad looked up. He saw that Cash was already standing, and the other munks were climbing to their feet. He also saw that Cash had a thin line of blood running down the tip of his sword. It was obvious that Cash had sliced Vlad's hand. "You furry little bastard! Why can't you just die?!" "Got a lot to live for. That's why. And so do you. Or, rather, you did. But you threw it all away. You had a loving family. Or, at least, a niece who, by the sound of it, loved you almost as much as she loved her own father. She even held out hope that you'd changed your ways when she heard that you'd broke out of jail. And how did you repay he faith and her love? He put a spell on her that made her life a living hell and now, you just shocked her with a stun gun. But, I don't think her mind or her body is what hurts the most right now. It's her heart. She doesn't want to fight you, but she doesn't see any other way. She sees it as her duty to try to stop you before you fall any deeper into darkness. That's why she did all of this. That was her only goal. And how are her efforts rewarded? She has to suffer through more physical pain. And yet, I doubt she has any plans to give up. Don't you see? She loves you that much. That no matter how much pain she goes through, she still wants to try to save what's left of the uncle she loves in you. You see? You had the one thing that everyone in this world needs, unconditional love, and you threw it away. And for what? Money, power? All because of greed." "Shut up. You have no idea what I've gone through." "But I do. I may not look it to you, but I'm human. Or at least, I possess a human heart. So I understand human emotions. I understand love, pain, anger. I know it all. So I can understand why you started this. Why you robbed that bank. There were things you wanted right? Things that you in your then current way of life would possibly never have. But you still wanted it. And so, you allowed greed to consume you. And that's when you robbed the bank. And when you got caught, I can imagine you felt scared. Scared because you knew you would be going to prison, and I understand that. Prison's a scary place. Everyone's heard the stories about what goes on in prison. So, it was only natural to be scared. And I'll bet you grew angry too, didn't you? Because you were stuck behind those cold walls, and you weren't going anywhere for a long time. Your life was ripped out of your hands, and that angered you, didn't it? Then, you found that book, and you let greed consume you again. And we all know what happened after that. I understand all of that, but it doesn't make it right. You had a choice, no, you had a lot of choices and you chose the wrong ones. You let greed guide you, and true, in the end, it brought you power. But it also succeeded in alienating just about everyone that gave adman about you. Because of your greed, you lost the most valuable thing in the world. The love of your family. Only Iza held on. Well, I say she's held on long enough. So here's your last chance. Surrender now or I will take you down." "Never." "Then you leave me no choice." Cash slid into battle position. 'Your going down." " 'Grrr' Shut up!" Vlad fired a huge blast of concentrated dark energy at Cash. "Persona!" Alex appeared and blocked the attack. But he was having trouble. "I can't hold it!" Alex yelled. "Persona!' Alex heard. The other seven sprits appeared to stop the spell. The other munks walked up. "Let's end this.' Alvin said. The other munks nodded. "Alright then. Pour it on, guys!" Cash yelled. The chipmunks concentrated and the spirits absorbed the energy and began to push. "Keep going!" Alex called. The chipmunks concentrated harder. The spirits absorbed more energy and pushed harder. The spell moved farther back. "We can do this! Keep going!" Simon yelled. 'I will destroy you all!" Vlad yelled. The blast intensified. "This is it, guys! It's all or nothing, so give it everything you've got!" Theodore yelled. The chipmunks concentrated even harder. They concentrated so hard that their faces started to turn beet red. The spirits gained yet another burst of strength and pushed the blast back towards Vlad. "No! I will not loose!" "Oh, yes you will!" Cash yelled. "Altogether guys! Per-so-na!" With last ditch effort, the munks gave the spirits all they had and they pushed the spell back with all their might. They succeeded in reaching Vlad and, when they noticed the spell beginning to act like the spell from before, they gave the spell one last mighty push, pushed it into Vlad's face and then leaped out of the way. The spell exploded and sent Vlad flying. He slammed into the ground, head first. As soon as the dust settled, Carter and Iza could see the aftermath. The chipmunks were laying on he ground, breathing heavily. The spirits were rising up from the ground. And Vlad was out cold on the ground. Iza, who had now recovered from her stun gun exposure, rushed to the side of the chipmunks. "Are you alright?" "We're fine. Just really tired.' Alvin wheezed. Iza smiled. She then walked over to her uncle. "It's over." She said. Carter came up to Iza. "I'll take him to the car.' "Make sure to lock it if you decide to come back." "Right." Carter picked up Vlad and headed out of the cave. Iza walked over to where Vlad kept his book. "This thing. It shouldn't even exist. For what little good it can do, it should be destroyed. That's it. I'm gonna burn it. But before that…" Iza picked up the book and quickly scanned through it. She found a spell to release the barrier spell. She muttered the words and the barrier lifted. 'Go on, no. Your free." The spirits shot out of the cave, while shouting calls of thanks. Carter, who had returned to assist the munks to the car, witnessed the site of the spirits erupting out of the cave and taking off in all directions. 'That's one of those once in a lifetime moments for sure." He said to himself. He then ran back inside. 'Iza!" He yelled. "The book… did you use it to release the spirits?" Iza nodded. "Then it's finally over. Thank God." Iza threw a hug on Carter. 'Uh, Iza.." Iza's head shot up towards Carter's and she kissed him on the lips. When she pulled away. 'Thank you so much, Carter. I couldn't have done it with out you." "Uh, Iza, I.." Iza put finger to Carter's lips. 'I know. I can read minds remember? I feel the same way about you." "You do?" "After all you've been through, just for me, how couldn't I? But if you don't believe me, then let me say it flat out. Carter, I love you." "I knew it!" They heard Brittany cry. Carter And Iza quickly realized that the munks were still laying on the ground still. "Oh, sorry. I got carried away. I didn't mean to ignore you!" Iza said. 'It's okay. That was kinda cute." Brittany said. "Yeah, it's all good." Alvin said. 'But, we could use some help here. We kinda can't get up." "right." As soon as the munks were stable on their feet, Simon asked Iza if she was really going to burn the book. 'Yes, I am. It's the right thing to do." "Hey, before you do, Could you check to see if there's a spell to bring folks like us back to life?" Danny asked. Iza flipped to section of the book on spirits and read through it. 'Sorry, guys. Nothing." "Oh well. We've been on this earth long enough. I'd say it's time for us to go." Alex said.


	26. Chapter 26

The final chapter

The munks, Carter and Iza were taken aback by what Alex said. "Are you serious?" Iza asked. "Yeah. We've already talked about it. We decided that once this was over, there'd be nothing left for us to do here. So, we decided that this is where we say goodbye." "But, then why did you ask if there was a way for you to come back to life in the book?" Eleanor asked. "I just asked cause I was curious." Danny said. 'So, your really going." Cash said. 'Yeah." Alex said. "But, we just met you.' Theodore said. " Yeah, but even so, you'll never forget us right?" Dexter said. "Of course not." Brittany said. 'We'll probably never say the word persona again, but we'll never forget you." Despite her words, Brittany had visible tears forming in her eyes. "Hey, dry those eyes, Brittany." Casey said, noticing Brittany's tears. "But…" "Hey, this isn't goodbye forever…" "Only just for now." Cash finished. 'Exactly. We're going to go on ahead to the pearly gates. I promise we'll wait for you there. But, don't be in any hurry to catch up. Live as long as you can. We won't mind the wait, I swear. So live, love, and bring joy into the world, the way only you can." "Wow. That was pretty deep, Casey." Anna said. "Yeah, it was, wasn't it? And I meant every word. You guys were listening, right?" The munks nodded. "Good. You be sure to do what I told you." "Alright, guys. I'd say it's time for us to go." Alex said. The other spirits nodded. The spirits gathered together. 'Hey, guys." Cash called. The spirits looked to Cash. "There's a little girl, a friend of ours, named Molly Dover already waiting up there. Say hi for us." "Will do." Alex said. The spirits waved goodbye one last time and one by one, they disappeared. "See you, later." Alex said as he disappeared. When he was gone, there were no spirits left. The munks seemed a little sad. "Hey, buck up, guys." Carter said. "They don't want you to be sad. They want you to be happy." "Yeah, Carter's right. We're doing what they want by being all mopey." Cash said. 'You know what I think they'd want us to do?" Alvin asked. 'No, what?" "Have a party." "A party?" Eleanor asked. "Yeah, you know, a victory party." "hmm, you know, knowing them, I'd say Alvin's right. They probably do want us to have a victory party." Simon said. 'Then let's do it." Cash said. ' Alright, a party!" Brittany said. "Ain't no party like a chipmunk party.." Alvin sang. "Cause a chipmunk party don't stop." Brittany chimed in. "A party sounds like a great idea. When should we have it?" Iza asked. "Not today. We're still pretty tired. Let's do it tomorrow. After church of course." Cash said. 'Of course. When does you church usually let out?" "About twelve thirty." "Okay, We'll meet you at your house around one tomorrow." "Great. But, first let's go home." The munks, Carter and iza headed back to the car and headed home. ( The next day) "Come on, guys! Mom and Xavier are here!" Cash yelled. The munks ran out to Xavier's limo and hurriedly got inside. "Well, they're full of energy this morning." Xavier said. "Hmmm." Vinny said. 'What is it, Vin?" "Is it just me, or do the kids look, I don't know, more, uh, mature, today?" "Now that you mention, yeah, they do." "I wonder why?" "Who knows? After all, you know teens and their hormones. They probably got a fresh shot last night and that's making look older." "Hmm, I don't know… Oh, well, let's go." At Church, the munks made sure to thank God for watching over them. After church, Xavier offered to take the munks out to eat. "Sorry, Xavier" Alvin said "No, Alvin. Let's call him by the name he's earned. Grandpa." "Okay. Sorry, Grandpa, we gotta take a rain check. We're expecting company at home." "Oh, well, okay." Xavier dropped the munks off at home. Twenty minutes later, iza and Carter showed up with chips and various snacks. "Let's party!" Carter yelled. And so the party was on. Eventually Carter and Iza asked the chipmunks to sing. "Come on, just one song." Iza begged. "Okay, okay. But, what do we sing?" Alvin said. "Why don't we let Theodore choose?' Simon asked. "Yeah, and Eleanor can take the lead on whatever song he chooses." Brittany said. "You really mean it?" Theodore asked. "Of course." "Cool, thanks. Uh, let's see. Um…." "Well, Theo?" Cash asked. "Well, the only song I can think of that fits this situation is bring it on." "That's perfect." Alvin said. "Good call, Theo." "Okay, guys and girls, let's do it! Ely, hit it!" Brittany called. Eleanor began to sing "It's time to make it happen, it's to make it lasting', a whole new chain reaction, starting here with you. A new day for a new beginning, feels like the world's spinning, and there's no choice but winning, it's what we've got to do. Well, lately, it's been getting crazy, but I know we're ready to take on anything." She sang. Eventually, they sang the song out. They had sung pretty loud. Loud enough for Mr. Talbot next door to hear. However, he wrote it off as just them practicing. Eventually, the party wore down and it inevitably came time for Carter and Iza to leave. Iza threw a tight hug around the chipmunks. "I can't thank you all enough. Thank you for everything." "No problem. By the way, I forgot to ask before the party, how's Vlad?" Alvin asked. "He's in the hospital right now, with a concussion. Believe it or not, he hit his head hard enough to cause some memory loss. And, conveniently enough, for got everything up to the point where he was put in jail to begin with." "In other words, he's been reset." "Yeah, I finally my uncle Vlad back. It'll take some time, as he'll still have to go back and serve out the rest of his sentence, but I believe, that everything is going to be just fine from here on out." "And if it's not, you know where to find us." Theodore said. Iza nodded. "And if you ever need me, just drop me a line. I left you my cell number and my email address on a piece of paper next to your phone." "Great, thanks." "Well, it's been great hanging out with you guys. But, it's high time we got back to our lives. 'whistle' man, we've got a long road ahead of us." Iza grabbed Carter's hand and said "But, if we walk it together, nothing can go wrong." Brittany giggled and began to hum the wedding march song. "Hey, knock it of, Britt." Carter said. 'Okay. But, remember what the Beyonce song says, Carter. If you like it, you better put a ring on it." "I'll think about it." "Boy, you are so indecisive. Iza, you better keep a close eye on him." "Don't worry, I will, Brittany. Well,…Goodbye." "See ya." Carter said. The couple got into the car and drove away. Once the chipmunks could no longer see the car, they headed back inside. "Now what do we do?" Alvin asked. Just then, the phone rang. 'I got it." Cash said. "Hello? Oh, hey, Dave. No, everything's fine here. Oh, you know. Just hanging out. So, how'd the meeting go? Really? Great. Hey, guys, we got the gig." "Great." Simon said. "Okay, you'll be back tomorrow, right? Okay, see you then. Bye." "So, they're coming back tomorrow." Alvin said. "Yup." 'What do we do until then?" Theodore asked. Suddenly, Eleanor yelled from in the living room. "Hey, guys, come here!" "What is it, Ely?" Alvin asked, walking into the room. "I was looking in this cupboard for some games we could play, and look what I found." "That's one of our movie spoof tapes." Simon said. 'Yup. Man, it's been ages huh?" "Yeah, sure has. Hey, there we go. Let's do that. Let's make some more movies." "Yeah, sounds like fun, let's do it." "It's time for the chipmunks to go back to the movies." ( And while they do that, let's go see what their future selves are up to in 'A chipmunk reunion 2', coming soon.)


End file.
